For the Love of a Child
by QuinntanaEndgame
Summary: Santana and Quinn Fabray-Lopez have been wanting to adopt for the second time ever since their daughter, Chloe, got older. However, when their agent Lisa calls about Sofia Alvarez, they quickly realize adoption isn't always smooth sailing. Not my best summary. Rated M for smut and abuse, warnings are also inside. Give it a chance? Please and thank you.
1. Chapter 1

For the Love of a Child

 **A/N: I don't own any Glee characters. I know some of you are probably mad I'm starting a new story instead of updating 'Wrong Turn' (and I know I'll probably regret it) but unfortunately I lost inspiration to write it.** **I don't plan on abandoning it though so hopefully that doesn't happen.**

 **There of course are trigger warnings for mention of abuse so if that's too much, feel free to skip those parts, you won't miss much and I won't be offended at all. Enjoy!**

 **P.S. Quinn didn't have Beth, just FYI. And imagine AnnaSophia Robb as Chloe.**

* * *

Chapter One

No one is perfect, it's impossible for anyone to not make a mistake. It's how we learn. Without making mistakes, you can't be wise. However small or big, a mistake can either hurt you, or someone else, even without you realizing it. At least that's what seven-year-old Sofia Alvarez thought to herself everyday.

It was a mistake when her neighbor turned out her lights after hearing Sofia scream at the top of her lungs for help. It was a mistake when her best friend's mother turned the other cheek, finding another suspicious bruise. It was a mistake when the doctor didn't ask more questions, and it was a mistake when her own mother didn't ask any.

Sofia Alvarez feels she doesn't have anyone in her corner. Marcos Sanchez, her mother's boyfriend, has two sides. The side she likes, comes out when her mother or other people are around. He's nice to everyone and can even be funny. Then there's the other side that comes out when no one is around.

Marcos Sanchez was always nice before he lost his job. Before, he had everything. A beautiful girlfriend, a steady job with a great income and a great house. When he was fired, all that is left was the beautiful girlfriend and her daughter. Now they live in a tiny apartment in Lima Heights, the 'sketchy' part of town, as the teens in the area calls it.

Marcos is now in charge of the household chores, cooking, and Sofia. However, Marcos doesn't care for his new role. He finds it degrading and embarrassing as a man. If he had somewhere else to go, he would, but instead he spends his girlfriend's money on alcohol and even a few drugs to throw himself a pity party.

For the last few months of summer vacation, it had been hell for Sofia. Her mother worked more to pay rent, utilities, and other necessities. She was also forced to pay for Marcos' bad habits.

Sofia has a hunch her mother knows he's abusing all the alcohol she's paying for, and what he does to her daughter when she's not around. What she doesn't know is why she let it happen. Not just the daily physical abuse she endures, why didn't she stop one of the worst days of her life from happening?

* * *

For the Fabray-Lopez family it was just a normal day.

Santana and Quinn Fabray-Lopez woke up the same time they do every morning for work. The pair greet each other with a tired smile and even a kiss before getting ready for the day. The couple usually take turns making breakfast and today it's Santana's turn while Quinn wakes up their 15-year-old daughter Chloe.

Quinn and Santana knew their daughter's teenage days were going to be difficult. Chloe has had an attitude ever since she was eleven. Now only fifteen, she's breaking the rules, she's defiant, and they suspect she's hanging around bad influences, no matter how much she denies it.

Although their daughter has become quite difficult, having a teen in the house makes Santana and Quinn miss having a little one. For a while now the couple have been on a waiting list to adopt for the second time. Once they finally get a call from their agent, Lisa, the Fabray-Lopez family will grow.

"Chloe, time to get up." Quinn says as she shakes the teen. School may not have started just yet but the Cheerios, the same squad Santana and Quinn cheered for, have practice.

"It's not until nine." She whines putting the comforter over her head.

"It's eight thirty, get up."

Quinn rips the comforter off Chloe then joins her wife in the kitchen. Santana is standing at the stove making french toast with bacon and sausage. Quinn wraps her arms around the Latina and kisses her cheek.

"Is Chloe up?" Santana asks.

"Probably not. I'll give her five more minutes, though."

"She better. If she's late, I'm late."

Santana is not only the Spanish teacher at her old High School, she also coaches for the same cheer squad she used to cheer for with her wife and best friend Brittany S. Pierce, whom is her assistant.

When they graduated high school, their plan was to get out of Lima, and they had but things don't always work out the way you want it. Although none of the unholy trinity were happy with it at first, they're all very happy now.

"Don't worry. She wants to make captain this year. She can't afford to be late." Quinn says breaking the embrace to make a pot of coffee. And as if on cue, Chloe walks in, bed head and all.

Although she's adopted, Chloe could easily pass as Quinn's daughter if only the teen had hazel eyes instead of brown. But shares the same blonde hair and fair skin with Quinn. Even before the adoption was official, the teen always felt apart of the family.

At the tender age of two, Chloe was put into the foster care system when her parents both overdosed on heroine. Luckily for Santana and Quinn, they were next on the list and were the perfect match. Chloe took an instant liking to Quinn and from then on the two blondes formed a special bond. Santana couldn't help feel a little jealous in the beginning, however, that didn't last. She knows her girls love her just the same.

"Sarah just texted me." Chloe greets taking a seat at the table with her brand new iPhone 7. "She'll be late for practice, she's taking her permit test today."

"Good morning to you, too, mija." Santana sarcastically says.

"Morning." Chloe mumbles. "If Sarah passes, I'll officially be the only one of my friends who doesn't have a permit."

"You know the rules. You'll get yours when you can behave." Says Quinn.

Chloe groans. "If you didn't have all these stupid rules, I'd have my permit by now."

"If we didn't have these rules, you'd be more out of hand than you are now. Probably doing some kind of drug in Lima Heights with-what's his name, babe?" Santana asks.

"Who?"

"That kid, the one with the long hair, he's always waking around the neighborhood." She gestures with her hand then puts some french toast on to a plate to give to Chloe.

"Liam."

Santana chuckles. "Right."

Quinn smiles at her wife's childishness while she pours a cup of coffee for them. As the blonde passes Santana, she gives Quinn her plate before they sit at the table.

"Why do you have to laugh every time someone says his name?" Chloe asks Santana.

Santana shrugs then changes the subject. "Remember after practice I'm taking you to the mall to do more school shopping. So I don't want to see you talking to any of the football players or even Sarah, Annie, or Mia. Go to the showers right after practice, ok? I don't want to be at the mall all morning."

"Ok, ok."

Santana rolls her eyes while Chloe texts one of her friends. Then the Latina snatches the iPhone 7 from Chloe's hands. "Finish eating so you can get dressed. I've never been late as a coach or cheerleader and I'm not going to start now."

Much like Santana had, Chloe rolls her eyes.

"Do you still want me to meet you at the grocery store after work?" Quinn asks Santana.

The Latina nods. "I usually forget something and we need to have everything for the cook out." Every year before school starts they throw an end of summer cook out.

"Ok. I only have three houses to show but I'm going to try the one on Maple again. So I don't know how long I'll be."

Suddenly Chloe pumps her fist in the air while Santana groans then retrieves a couple bills from her purse siting on the counter.

"I told you she's not going to sell that house." Says Chloe.

Santana shakes her head. "That's ok, there's still time. Today she's going to sell it, I can feel it my bones. Double it." She says confidentially retaking her seat, giving Chloe her money.

"I'm glad to see you two are enjoying my failure." Quinn grumbles.

"Of course I'm not, mi amor." Santana assures her wife, earning a smile. "I'm losing my money so far, it isn't enjoyable for me." She adds.

Quinn just rolls her eyes. "You two better get moving." She points to the time.

Both Chloe and Santana jump out of their chairs then put their plates into the sink. Chloe returns to her room to get ready while Santana packs them some snacks, leaving Quinn to clean up the kitchen. Once the snacks are packed, Santana puts on her shoes then checks the time again.

"Chlo, let's go! I'm leaving without you if you're not ready!" Santana shouts to the second floor.

"I'm coming!" Chloe shouts back then a few seconds later runs down the stairs. "Bye, Mom, I love you!" She yells into the kitchen. Quinn joins them in the foyer to say goodbye with hugs and kisses to both her daughter and wife.

"I love you, have a good day at work." Says Santana after kissing her wife. "Get me my money back." She whispers in the blonde's ear.

"Why don't you just not bet on me selling this house?"

"Where's the fun in that?" Santana teases.

Quinn shakes her head, albeit with a smile as she watches her two favorite girls leave. Santana catches the blonde staring and winks causing Quinn to blush like a school girl. She also feels nostalgic watching Santana take Chloe to cheer practice. It takes her back to their daughter's very first practice when she was only seven.

Chloe had seen the pictures and even watched the videos of her mothers' cheering. The little girl told everyone who would listen she wanted to be the best cheerleader just like her Mom, Mami and even her "Aunt" Brittany.

It feels like forever ago. It's been so long since they had a little one in the house, and Quinn has recently been feeling impatient waiting for the call from their adoption agent. Santana has been assuring her they'll get a phone call soon but Quinn isn't sure her wife's bones, or Mexican third eye, will be right this time.

Putting the thought aside, Quinn punches in the code for the _ADT_ security system before getting into her car and driving to work. Quinn also doesn't feel she'll ever sell the house on Maple drive, however, doesn't show it in front of co-workers. Even as they tease her, she doesn't show them how she really feels.

The first house she's showing is a small two bedroom home with a one door garage for a single mother and her son. While giving the woman a tour, Quinn couldn't help but get semi distracted by the little boy patiently playing with his toy cars, pushing them around every room they go into. Although, Quinn wasn't too distracted to sell the house.

The next house she shows to a family of five. Only one of the three children were present, however, as the parents claimed their twin boys were working. Quinn also watched the little girl play with her dolls while day dreaming about her own family growing. Again, despite the distraction, she's able to sell the home.

By the time Quinn arrives at Maple drive, she's feeling slightly more confident than she had earlier that morning. Only slightly, though. The house isn't ugly, it's had a remodel on the outside and a few touch ups inside, but it does not make up for the old pipes, old electric wires, and to top it off, the owners are asking too much for it.

"I still don't know." The woman says with uncertainty after Quinn shows the family the kitchen. "It's a pretty nice house but I'm not sure if it's worth the price."

Quinn wants to tell her she's right on the dot but keeps it on the tip of her tongue.

"Yea, I'm not sure it's worth it either." Her husband agrees. "We've already been evicted from our last house from all the work we put into it." He says with some embarrassment. "Are the plumping and electricity as old as this house?"

Quinn sighs deeply. She can't lie to them. As much as she would love to have bragging rights to sell this house, she can't let the family be evicted for the second time.

"I'm going to be honest with you, this house definitely isn't worth what the owner is asking for. I've had many arguments about the price, they refuse to change it. But I promise, I'll definitely find you something more in your range and fits your family."

"I hope so. I can't live with my Mother much longer." The man grumbles.

Quinn chuckles as her cell phone rings. The blonde excuses herself then checks the I.D. Her heart beats wildly against her chest, this is the phone call she's been waiting for.

"You know we don't care if they're a boy or girl, all I want to know is their name." She says into the phone.

Lisa, their adoption agent, chuckles. "You've been expecting my call?" She teases.

"Of course not but I have been thinking about how much I wanted to get this phone call. So, fill me in, what's their name, how old, and when are we picking them up?"

"Her name is Sofia Alvarez, and she's seven-years old. But you won't be picking her up, I'll be bringing her to you but before that, I have to talk to you and Santana about a few things in person. I'll probably be over around four or five. This one is complicated. The adoption won't even be official until we're sure you and Santana can handle this."

Quinn frowns then covers the mouth piece with her hand before turning to the couple patiently waiting for her. "Why don't we reschedule tomorrow? I'm really sorry, but I've been waiting for this call."

The man waves her off. "It's ok. As long as we find something, I can deal with my Mother. We'll see ourselves out."

"Thank you. Just call my secretary to make the appointment, have a nice day." She doesn't know why, but Quinn waits until their out of ear shot before returning to her discussion with Lisa. "What do you mean until you're sure we can handle this? What makes this girl different?"

"That's what I want to discuss with you and your wife. I'm so busy right now and it's not a topic that should be talked about over the phone. I'll see you later, try not to worry until then, ok?"

Quinn scoffs. "I'm not making any promises." She jokes. When the call comes to an end, the blonde freezes with her phone pressed to her ear for a moment then Quinn groans as she runs her fingers through her short hair.

She wasn't expecting this. It had been so easy to adopt Chloe, Quinn didn't think there could be a complication the next time they try adopting.

 _Santana won't be happy about this._ Quinn thanks. _Especially since I won't be able to explain to her why we might not get so lucky this time._

Despite the uncertainty, Quinn also reminds herself they have to stay strong no matter the outcome. One day they will adopt another child, whether it be today, or next year, it's going to happen. As Santana would say, she can feel it in her bones.

On her way to the grocery store, Quinn calls her boss to let him know she's done for the day then tries thinking of a way to tell her wife about the conversation she had with Lisa. She even rehearses it in her mind all the way to the store.

Inside, Quinn walks down the rows of long isles in search of her wife and daughter and finds them in the freezer section getting milk and eggs.

"I have good news and bad news, what do you want to hear first?"

Santana sighs. "Bad, no, good."

"Lisa called. A seven-year-old girl, Sofia Alvarez, needs a family."

"What's the bad news?" Chloe asks before Santana even has enough time to celebrate.

"She said this time is different. The adoption won't be official until the agency are sure we could handle this situation. That's all I know, she said she'll explain everything when she comes to the house later around four or five." Quinn adds before Santana could ask.

"Did she at least say if Sofia will be with her?"

Quinn thanks for a moment. "No, and I didn't think to ask. I wasn't expecting for her to basically say we may not be able to adopt her anyway." She explains.

Santana slowly nods her head. "Ok, let's not panic or think of the worst case scenario. Let's just get we need for the cook out and go home."

Although Quinn is surprised by her wife's positivity, that's exactly what they did. By the time they get everything they need and drive back home, it's already almost four.

Santana reminds Chloe she has to help put away all the groceries and even confiscates the teen's phone again.

Once the food is put away, Chloe takes her phone back before going to her bedroom. Santana and Quinn take advantage of the alone time in the living room to talk.

"So how do you really feel about this? I was surprised you were so calm at the grocery store." Quinn brushes her fingers through her wife's dark locks while the Latina rests her head on Quinn's lap.

Santana snorts. "You sound like a therapist." She teases. "I'm not sure what I feel. I have more questions than anything." She admits.

"Me too. What could of happened to this little girl for Lisa to question whether or not we could take care of her?"

Santana shrugs then looks up at Quinn. "Whatever it is, I think we can do it."

Quinn flashes a weak smile. "I hope you're right."

Santana turns her head to kiss Quinn's thigh then winks. "My Mexican third eye is always right, baby."

Quinn laughs when a thought occurs to her. "Oh, I almost forgot to tell you, I didn't sell the house."

Santana groans and swears in Spanish making Quinn laugh when the door bell rings, causing the married couple to go silent. Santana is the first to recover. She gets up from the couch with a groan then holds her hand out to Quinn and pulls her up. Silently the couple walk over to the door holding hands to greet Lisa and right away notice she's alone.

"Don't look so disappointed. If you still want to start the process of adopting Sofia by the time I leave, then I'll bring her over tomorrow."

"I'm sorry, Lisa." Quinn apologizes. "Come on in. Make yourself at home." The couple step aside to let Lisa in then follow her into the living room.

"Could you not beat around the bush with this?" Santana asks a little too harshly. "I just want to know why this time is so different." She says more gently as an apology.

"It's ok, I understand." Lisa waves her off then takes a deep breath. "Sofia has been through a lot, more than any seven-year-old should have to go through. After her Father passed away, her Mother has been dating a Marcos Sanchez." She begins to explain, although with some difficulty.

"We have reason to believe he's been physically abusing her. That's why it's different this time." The couple are speechless. This is definitely not what they were expecting. "Sofia won't even talk to anyone. A neighbor has been suspicious for a while and the moment she heard furniture being thrown, she called the police, who called us. Gabriella, her Mother, is in jail for child endangerment."

"That's-um-unexpected." Quinn finally speaks up. "I just thought she had a mental disability or something not-"

"I know." Lisa cuts her off seeing the blonde struggle to wrap her mind around the news. "If it's too much for you, I can have another fam-"

"No." Santana interrupts her. "We may not have dealt with this situation before but on some level you have to feel like we can do this, or else you would have taken Sofia to another family by now." She points out. "It sounds to me like she just needs lots of love. We can do that." She argues.

Quinn smiles looking at her wife full of pride and cradles the Latina's hand in her own.

"I'm happy to hear that." Lisa retrieves a few papers and a pen from her messenger bag then slides it on the coffee table in front of the couple. "You know how this works. I'll be back tomorrow with Sofia around two or three. Does that fit in your schedule?"

"That should be fine. I have work but I could use a vacation day to take off." Quinn says as she's next to sign the necessary papers before Lisa takes them back.

"I'm glad you both decided to take this on. She probably would have to stay at the orphanage facility. And believe me, she wouldn't do well if she had to stay there any longer." Lisa says as she stands up. "It's ok, I'll let myself out."

Santana and Quinn remain seated. When they hear the front door close, the women finally release a breath they hadn't realized they held in.

"I have mixed emotions." Quinn admits. "I'm happy we can provide a home, and love, but I also feel so much sympathy for her, and I'm a little scared this might be too much for us." She confesses.

"I feel the exact same way but we have to be positive. If it becomes too overwhelming, we can always get some help. But for now, I wanna feel excited about this. We've wanted to adopt again for a long time."

Quinn smiles brightly. "You're right, babe, it's going to feel so nice to have a little one in the family again. I want to be excited, too."

The couple pull each other into a hug as Chloe walks in the room.

"When are we picking her up?" She asks knowing why her Moms' would be celebrating.

"We're not." Santana answers for them. "Lisa is bringing her over." The Latina then turns to Quinn and has a silent conversation with her wife.

"Sit down, sweetie, we have to talk about this."

* * *

After their talk with Chloe, Santana reminds Quinn they don't have anything for Sofia. They need clothes, furniture for her bedroom, everything, even some school supplies. They have some things they saved when Chloe was younger but aren't sure any of the clothes, or shoes would fit and they didn't keep any of her old furniture.

So the small family make a trip to _Ikea_ for cheap furniture on their budget, making sure everything is delivered to the house that night. Then they go to the mall for lots of clothes and shoes after calling Lisa to ask for Sofia's sizes.

It was late by the time Santana and Quinn finished putting together the new furniture so the couple sleep in later than usual the following day. Chloe is already awake texting away on her phone and watching tv.

" _Did you eat_?" Santana asks in Spanish, not fully awake yet.

Chloe frowns. "Mami, you're speaking Spanish." Quinn chuckles, following her wife.

"Sorry, mija. I'm not awake yet." She apologizes. "Did you eat?" She repeats in English.

"Yea, I just had cereal." Santana nods. "Is it ok if I go over Sarah's and spend the night with Mia and Annie? Sarah's Mom is picking me up."

Quinn frowns. "You don't wanna be here when Lisa drops Sofia off?"

Chloe shrugs. "I just figured she would feel overwhelmed or something." Although not convinced she's telling the whole truth, Santana and Quinn have a silent conversation.

"That's fine but you're not spending the whole day over there." Quinn says.

"K." Chloe jumps up then goes to her bedroom to pack.

Santana and Quinn keep themselves occupied with breakfast to distract themselves from day dreaming about meeting Sofia. When they're finished eating, the couple wash the few dishes in the sink together. Quinn dries the last plate when Santana wraps her arms around the blonde from behind and trails feather light kisses to her neck.

"I think I just heard Chloe leave."

Quinn moans as Santana hits a certain spot on her neck. "Lisa should be coming over soon. I don't want our moans to be the first thing Sofia hears."

"We have enough time for a quickie."

Quinn moans even louder as her wife's hand wanders between her legs, just putting enough pressure to tease the blonde. Then before she knows it, her thong and pajama shorts are to her ankles, and she's siting on the counter with Santana's head between her thighs.

"Oh yea, right there, San. Ugh." She moans loudly as her thighs stiffen and squeeze Santana's head. The Latina helps her wife ride it out then trails her lips up Quinn's leg, to her abs all the way up her neck and jaw.

"We'll finish this tonight. Lisa will be here shortly."

Santana presses their lips together then goes upstairs to the master bedroom to shower and dress for the day. For a moment Quinn is in a sex induced haze before finally recovering. The blonde cleans the counter then joins her wife upstairs. When Quinn is showered and dressed, Lisa finally arrives with Sofia.

"I don't know why but suddenly I'm really nervous." Santana admits. "What if she's so traumatized she won't even like us?"

Quinn flashes a sympathetic smile. "We'll definitely have to gain her trust but we have to be patient. We got this, remember?"

Santana snorts. "Right." She says with a laugh.

"What's so funny?" Quinn smiles.

"I just realized how after-school-special we sound."

Quinn shakes her head then takes a deep breath. A small part of her is nervous, too, but, they got this. The couple clutch each other's hand for support as they greet Lisa and Sofia. Lisa is kneeling to Sofia's height and quietly having a discussion until she realizes the door is open and stands up.

"Sorry about that. She's pretty shy."

"That's ok. Come on in." Quinn answers for them. The couple step aside and watch as the young Latina trails behind Lisa, keeping her eyes on the floor. Both feel sympathy towards her and already unknowingly make the same promise. Protect and love her. Despite knowing they may not be able to adopt her.

In the living room, Quinn and Santana sit at the opposite couch of Lisa and Sofia.

"Where's Chloe? I feel like I haven't seen her in forever."

"She's staying at a friend's house." Santana answers this time.

"Oh, I assumed all of you would be here for this." Lisa sounds surprised.

"Chloe said she didn't want Sofia to feel overwhelmed." Even saying it out loud, Quinn doesn't feel like she totally believes the story their daughter told.

Lisa just nods and changes the subject. "Sofia, honey, remember the very nice couple I was telling you about? This is Quinn, and her wife Santana." She introduces them.

Finally looking up at them, Sofia doesn't say anything. She just looks at them both, however, the trio notices she looks at Santana slightly longer before diverting her eyes back to the floor again. Lisa is a little disappointed at the lack of response but Santana and Quinn don't mind. They understand the little girl is just scared.

"Mi amor, why don't we show Sofia her room?" Santana suggests.

Quinn smiles at the little girl's direction to get her more comfortable. "I think we should let Sofia decide. What do you think, sweetie, do you wanna see your bedroom?"

Sofia is still looking at the floor but nods slightly, enough for the adults to notice. Then she follows the trio to the second floor, behind Lisa, silently observing everything they pass. Reaching the bedroom, there are purple letters on the door spelling out her name.

Inside, there is practically everything a little girl would want in her bedroom. Santana and Quinn are surprised themselves they were able to put all the furniture together in the short time they had.

"Wow, my daughter would love to have a room like this." Says Lisa, attempting to get a response out of Sofia. "You've got a ton of toys, a comfy bed. Check it out." She encourages.

Sofia inspects the bed, testing if it's comfy, as Lisa put it. Then she walks over to the large doll house and runs her fingers over the roof before moving on to the next toy as the adults watch her.

Spotting a doll with dark hair and brown eyes, Sofia picks it up. She runs her fingers over her face, hair and dress then suddenly throws it against the wall. In an unexpected fit of rage, Sofia begins throwing all of the toys and even removes the blankets from the bed.

Lisa does her best to stop her outburst while the married couple are in shock. However, Santana is first to respond and tries to help Lisa calm the little girl.

" _It's ok, sweetie. Just give us a chance. If you give us a chance, you'll see it's not so bad."_ She unintentionally says in Spanish. But it works. Sofia calms down then runs out of the room.

"Are you sure you're up to this?" Lisa asks with concern.

"Yes." Both Santana and Quinn say without hesitation. "We already signed the papers." Santana reminds the woman.

"I'll go look for her." Quinn volunteers but Santana stops her.

"Don't. Give her a minute. She's just feeling overwhelmed. We'll look for her when it's time to eat. Who knows maybe we can lure her out with food." She jokes in an attempt to lighten the mood.

"Well, I have to go." Lisa says checking her watch. "Thank you so much for doing this. Call if you need anything." Lisa gives both women a hug.

"I'll walk you out." Quinn offers.

While Quinn escorts Lisa to the door, Santana goes to the kitchen to prep the meat for dinner. Passing the laundry room, the brunette notices a small foot sticking out from behind the washer machine. Although she wants to comfort her, Santana lets her go.

She takes out the chicken breasts from the freezer then runs them under warm water in the sink to thaw.

"I wish I at least knew where she's hiding." Quinn says walking into the room.

"She's in the laundry room, behind the washer."

Quinn narrows her eyes in confusion. "You found her already?"

"I just saw her little foot sticking out. I didn't talk to her though." She explains.

"Ok. Need help with dinner?"

Santana smiles. "Si, gracias."

As the couple cook dinner, Sofia remains hiding behind the washer machine. The raven haired little girl just felt so overwhelmed and angry. She just exploded and after realizing what she did was wrong, Sofia got scared and hid.

Now she could smell dinner from the kitchen, and its making her stomach growl. However, she's not certain she wants to come out from her hiding spot. Despite how nice the pretty women seem to be, Sofia knows first hand that can change.

But the longer Sofia stays in her spot, the more hungry she gets. The floor in the laundry room isn't very comfortable either. It's hard and cold. Sofia crawls until she's by the doorway and peeks her head out toward the kitchen. Santana is doing something at the counter while Quinn is behind the brunette peppering her neck with kisses.

"I think the potatoes are smooth enough." Quinn says into her wife's neck.

"Ok, set the table, por favor."

While Quinn retrieves the plates, Santana puts all the food in the middle of the table.

"Should we set a plate for Sofia?" Quinn asks.

Santana nods. "She'll get hungry sooner or later."

Sofia has gone almost a week without eating before, and despite her stomach screaming for food, the young Latina is more comfortable in the laundry room. When the woman are no longer in the kitchen, she'll eat.

Once they finish, Quinn rinses the plates to put them in the dish washer, leaving one for Sofia on the table, hoping it'll be eaten before the food gets cold.

"I'm going to call Chloe." Santana says already dialing the number.

Quinn turns to her wife to ask to put the phone on speaker when she notices Sofia quickly go back into the laundry room. "Why don't we go in the living room." She suggests.

Santana looks to Quinn confused and the blonde points to the laundry room. Getting the hint, she follows Quinn into the living room. As soon as they're gone, Sofia rushes into the kitchen and digs into her dinner, not even bothering to use silverware.

Its been so long since the last time she had a decent meal. (She was offered plenty of food at the orphanage home, but the food wasn't the best.) Now that she's finally eating, it only takes minutes to get everything down, including the juice. Sofia had eaten so much so fast, the girl belches loudly then covers her mouth, frightened the pretty women in the other room heard.

For a moment she waits to see if the women heard then she puts the plate and cup into the sink. As she does, one of the women scream from the other room, causing her to drop the plate. Sofia's heart pounds rapidly against her small chest as she watches the glass shatter into pieces on the hard tile floor.

The pretty women emerge from the living room to inspect the damage. Before either one of them could say anything, Sofia is crying hysterically and apologizing in Spanish. Quinn crouches to Sofia's height as she attempts to calm her down.

"It's ok, sweetie. We're not mad." Sofia just cowards into the corner. Quinn turns to her wife with pleading eyes, silently begging for her help. Santana crouches next to Quinn and does her best to calm Sofia.

"Sh, sh, sh. _It's ok, it's ok. It's not the first glass that broke in the house. We can buy another one, we're not mad, sweetie."_ She tries in Spanish remembering it helped last time the little girl was upset.

"Lo siento."

" _I know you're sorry. It's ok, we forgive you. Calm down, beautiful."_

Sofia's sobs die down to sniffles and hiccups, but remains in the corner. Santana offers a smile to help calm the child more then asks Quinn for the broom and dustpan to clean up all of the broken glass. As she cleans, Santana informs Sofia of everything she's going to do before she does it so the sudden movements don't frighten her.

Quinn watches on with pride and slight jealousy, wishing she could calm the little girl with as much ease as her wife. But nonetheless she's still grateful Santana seems to be already bonding with Sofia. Quinn throws away the broken glass then puts the broom and dustpan back in the hall closet.

"Remember when Chloe was little? We need to establish a routine now before there's chaos." She reminds Santana. "Or we'll regret it later when she wants to sleep all day because she stayed up all night."

"Right." Santana nods then turns to the now calm Sofia. " _Feel better now?"_ She nods. " _How do you feel about a bubble bath, huh? I think we still have some toys Chloe had when she was little. How does that sound?"_

Sofia cautiously looks between the women, trying to read their faces. She doesn't like taking baths. Marcos took that joy away from her. So she shakes her head.

" _I like showers."_ She almost whispers. Santana has to strain her ears to hear.

" _Ok, one of us will have to stay in the bathroom with you though, ok? Better safe than sorry."_ She winks.

"What did she say?"

Santana stands up with a sigh. "She likes showers more. I told her one of us has to stay in the bathroom with her then. Chloe didn't take a shower until she was eleven. I'm only allowing it now cause that's what she's comfortable with." She explains.

"Ok, then I guess you should stay with her. We're not sure she can even speak English and we forgot to ask Lisa during the chaos. Plus, I think she's already taken to you anyway." Santana blushes.

"I don't think Lisa knows if she does or not. Remember she said she wouldn't talk to anyone. And she'll warm up to you, too." Santana pecks Quinn's lips then turns back to Sofia. " _Come on, sweetie. You can pick out your pajama's and then you can shower."_

Santana holds out her hand but Sofia ignores the offer as she sneaks past the women. Quinn offers a sympathetic smile.

"Maybe she hasn't taken to me after all."

"Be patient, remember?" Quinn says as she playfully smacks Santana's ass while she walks past the blonde.

Santana chuckles. "Right."

Sofia is already in her new bedroom picking out a pair of pajama's so Santana goes into the bathroom to get the shower ready. Sofia has a hard time choosing between the _Hello Kitty_ pajama set and the purple one covered in hearts. Thinking she hears the shower head turn on, the Latina quickly decides on the hearts before grabbing a pair of underwear and going into the bathroom.

However, inside she realizes the shower head is off. Santana is still siting at the edge of the tub while her fingers sit under the faucet to make sure the water is warm but not too hot. Sofia finds herself zoning out staring at the running water.

 _Sofia is back home, in the little apartment in Lime Heights. Her Mami is at work while Marcos is watching NASCAR on television in a tank top and boxers, drinking beer. Sofia doesn't have many toys, so she's forced to play with an old doll her Mother had when she was her age._

 _"Sofia, get me another beer." Marcos grunts followed by a loud belch._

 _The little Latina drops her old doll and goes into the kitchen to get Marcos his beer. Sofia opens the fridge and grabs one. As she goes to take it to Marcos, she clumsly trips over a forgotten shoe Marcos had already warned her to put away. The can of beer hisses loudly as it explodes all over the hardwood floor, grabbing Marcos' attention._

 _"I'm sorry, I didn't mean it." She says right away. However, it falls on deaf ears._

 _"Fucking bitch, look at this mess!"_

 _Marcos picks up the beer can and throws it away. Then the man stomps into another room. Sofia can hear the water running and hides under her bed, despite knowing he'll find her anyway. A few moments later Marcos barges into her room and drags her out from under the bed._

 _"No, I'm sorry! I'm sorry, it was an accident!" She shouts while squirming and kicking, trying to get Marcos to put her down._

 _"I don't wanna hear it! Bad girls like you deserve to be punished!"_

 _In the bathroom, the water is still running in the tub. The water is so hot Sofia can see the steam slowly raising. She screams even louder her throat hurts. But no matter how much she cries and pleads, Marcos still forces her into the boiling water._

Santana is worried. As soon as the water got warmer she turned to see Sofia zoned out and has been trying to get her attention ever since. She doesn't want to scare the girl so up until now she's tried calling out her name. Seeing how it's not working, she tries something else. Santana reaches over and gently puts her hand on Sofia's shoulder.

"Sofia." She tries again.

The brunette jumps back. " _No, don't make me!_ "

Santana's frown deepens. "Don't make you what, sweetie? You're going to take a shower, remember?" Sofia remains silent, her eyes fixed on the floor. "Do you want to talk about it?" She shakes her head. "Ok, that's ok." There's a short silence.

"Sorry." Sofia whispers.

Santana flashes a sympathetic smile. "So, you do speak English." She attempts to lighten the mood.

Sofia slowly nods. "Yes. Sometimes I speak Spanish when I'm really scared or mad." She whispers.

Santana takes a moment to silently count to five. It angers her to know Sofia was hurt so much a simple task like taking a shower frightens her. "I know being in a new place is scary, but you don't have to be afraid here. We're not going to hurt you and we'll make sure no one ever hurts you again. I pinky promise." She says holding up her pinky.

Sofia hesitates before wrapping her smaller pinky around Santana's as the older Latina offers a friendly smile.

"Are you ok to take a shower now?"

"Yes."

"Ok, I'll give you privacy so you can get in. To put the shower on, just pull this up." She points to the lever on the faucet. "Shout when you're done and I'll check on you, ok?"

Since Sofia is still a little jumpy, Santana decides to leave the little girl to shower on her own.

"K." She shyly says.

As promised Santana kept checking on Sofia while she showered. When with her wife, Santana clarified the little girl does in fact know how to speak English. She was going to tell her about the episode Sofia had but her wife's lips were distracting. Once she's finished, Sofia gets dressed then brushes her teeth before joining the women in the living room.

"Since school hasn't started yet you can watch one movie before bed." Quinn says. "But only one. By the time it's over, it'll be too late to watch another." Sofia just silently nods.

"Well what are you waiting for, pequeña? Go pick a movie. We still have some old ones when Chloe was younger." She encourages.

"Is Chloe your daughter?" Sofia quietly asks Quinn, surprising the blonde. "I saw pictures." She points to the hall way. "She looks like you."

"Actually, we adopted her. So she's our daughter." She explains.

Again, Sofia nods then turns to the shelf of movies. "Can I watch _Finding Nemo_?"

"Of course you can." Quinn says. The blonde puts the movie into the DVD player then gets comfortable cuddling into Santana's side. Sofia eyes the couple then opts for the love seat closer to the tv instead.

It's ten at night by the time the movie is over. Sofia is fast asleep, along with Santana. Despite being a high school teacher and cheer coach, she still hasn't learned not to stay up too late when she has to wake up early in the morning. Quinn first trails kisses across her wife's collar bone and up to her neck and ear.

"The movie is over." Santana just grunts. Quinn chuckles in response and straddles Santana's lap. "I'm taking my top off." Instead of eagerly waking up, Santana's eyes widen in shock. "Relax, I'm teasing, and Sofia is asleep."

Santana glares at her. "Don't start what you can't finish."

Quinn arches her brow knowing how much it turns Santana on. "Who says I won't? You already promised we'd finish our activity in the kitchen." She reminds her.

Santana holds on to Quinn's hips with a groan while biting her lip. "How did I forget?" Quinn just gestures toward the sleeping child. "Right. Let's get her to bed." Quinn climbs off her wife so the brunette can get up. "Do you wanna carry her up?"

"Yea." Quinn blushes.

Carefully she scoops Sofia up then the couple take the younger Latina into her new bedroom and carefully tucks her in.

"Sleep tight, pequeña." Santana whispers.

Quinn turns on the nightlight then the couple go to the master bedroom. They change into their pajama's then climb into bed. Quinn spoons Santana from behind and begins teasing the Latina with her hands while peppering feather light kisses to her neck, earning a moan from her wife.

"I hope Sofia is a deep sleeper." Quinn husks into Santana's ear.

* * *

The following morning Santana and Quinn are still in bed sleeping in each other's arms. Having stayed up most the night making love, the couple are tired. Sofia, however, is wide awake. She makes her bed in case the pretty women are as strict as Marcos was about a made bed. Then she quietly goes downstairs to get something to eat.

Not knowing where everything is kept, Sofia searches through the cabinets until she finds some food she likes. In one, there's a box of _Pop Tarts_. Whenever she used to go grocery shopping with her Mother, she always bought a box for her.

Sofia grabs the silver wrapping before ripping it open and uses a chair to reach the counter so she can put them into the toaster. Unlike most people, Sofia likes her _Pop Tarts_ warm. When the two pastry treats pop up, Sofia hears the front door open and hides between the refrigerator and the wall.

Chloe suddenly walks in texting on her phone then sets it on the counter before looking for something to eat. As she does, she notices the _Pop Tarts_ still in the toaster and frowns in confusion, then shrugs it off getting a box of cereal. Chloe retrieves a bowl, then getting the milk, she jumps and screams seeing Sofia.

"Where is he, I'll kick his ass!" Santana shouts holding up a bat with Quinn behind her. Seeing it's just Chloe, Santana lowers the bat. "Why did you scream?"

"She's scared the hell out of me." Chloe points to Sofia cowering in the corner. Both Santana and Quinn share a sympathetic look.

"Watch your language." Santana scolds putting the bat down.

"Sorry, but I wasn't expecting anyone to be hiding." She defends herself.

Santana crouches in front of Sofia. " _It's ok, it's just Chloe. You can come out."_

With caution, Sofia emerges from her hiding spot as Chloe looks on confused. "What did you tell her?"

Santana holds up her finger. " _You can eat now. It's ok, you're not in trouble._ " Sofia slowly nods then retrieves her _Pop Tarts_ before siting at the table to eat. "I just told her who you were and that she can come out." Santana shrugs.

"She speaks Spanish?" Chloe asks, a little jealous.

Santana nods. "Why are you here so early? I figured we'd have to drag you home."

"Sarah has plans with her boyfriend so Annie, Mia, and I decided to just go home. She can be kind of annoying whenever she has a date with Brayden."

Santana snorts. "Now you know how we felt whenever you talked about that one kid you had a crush on. What was his name, babe?"

Quinn chuckles as she starts breakfast. "Which one?" She teases.

Chloe narrows her eyes. "Not funny."

"Did you at least eat while you were over there?" Quinn asks.

"We had some cereal."

Santana rolls her eyes. "That's not breakfast." Being raised in a Hispanic home, the Latina grew up to a feast for every meal.

Chloe points to Sofia. "And _Pop Tarts_ is?"

"That is different. She's still getting comfortable with us." She says lowly.

"Whatever, I'm going upstairs. I told Sarah I would call her when I got home."

Santana sighs deeply then turns to Sofia. " _Finished?_ " She nods. " _Want some milk?"_

 _"_ Si." Sofia whispers.

Santana pours her glass then chuckles as Sofia gulps it all down. Sofia then climbs down from the chair and goes upstairs to her bedroom to be alone. However, as she passes Chloe's room she stops outside her door overhearing the teen's phone conversation.

"No, they don't suspect anything now that Sofia is here." A pause. "Yea, I know I owe you. You told me enough already." A longer pause. "Because he wanted me to leave or I would of stayed. Apparently he has football practice in an hour."

Hearing the boring conversation of a teenager, Sofia decides to go to her bedroom. The eight-year-old opens her closet then goes into the back, behind the rack of clothes to hide a few pieces of her _Pop_ _Tarts_ no one noticed she took.

Once they're hidden, Sofia goes into the bathroom to look for something in the cabinet. However, not finding it she searches else where. In the hall way, she spots a closet and searches there. Inside, there are sheets, and pillow cases on the bottom shelves. While on the very top, where she can't reach, there's some cleaning products.

Sofia knows what she's looking for won't be on the shelves. But below them she finds exactly what she needs and takes it into the closet with the _Pop Tarts._ Then turning to all of her toys, Sofia decides to play with the doll she threw the day before.

Downstairs, Santana and Quinn are still eating breakfast and drinking coffee.

"Why do you think Chloe went to Sarah's yesterday?" Santana asks. "We both know it wasn't for Sofia's benefit."

"I've been trying to think of a reason and I just don't know. She's been acting different over the last few weeks. I don't know what's going on with her."

"Well, I think it's either a new friend or a boy. And for her sake, it better be the latter."

"Oh come on, don't you remember what it was like to be at that age? You used to sneak out with Dani all the time."

"That's different. Dani couldn't get me pregnant." She points out. "And if it were a friend being a bad influence, I could handle that. Eventually she would see getting in trouble so much isn't worth it. But a boy who's a bad influence, is trouble. She'll think she's in love and just become more rebellious."

Santana and Quinn finish eating then wash the dishes together.

"Whatever is going on with Chloe, we'll deal with it when we cross that bridge. For now we have a little girl who's obviously scared and has definitely been through some stuff."

Santana nods. "That reminds me, something happened yesterday when Sofia took a shower."

Quinn frowns. "Why didn't you tell me before?"

"I meant to, I got sidetracked by my gorgeous wife's lips." Quinn blushes. "Anyway, I was getting the water warm and Sofia just zoned out. I called her name but she didn't answer. When I put my hand on her shoulder, she flinched and shouted at me."

"What did she say?" Quinn's frown deepens.

"It was so weird, it was like she had a flashback or something cause she said don't make me." Quinn shakes her head. "That asshole boyfriend had to of done something to her in the tub for her to react that way." Santana clenches her fist, not going unnoticed by her wife. Quinn takes her hand and kisses the back of if.

"I know it's hard, babe, but we have to be strong for her."

Santana nods. "I just wanna kick this guys ass."

Quinn flashes a weak smile. "I wish you could." The blonde pecks Santana's lips then looks at the time. "I gotta get ready for work. You gonna be ok?"

"Yea. Maybe I'll call Brittany, see if she wants to come over."

"K." Quinn pecks Santana's lips one more time before going upstairs.

After getting ready for work, Quinn says goodbye to her family, even Sofia, despite not getting a response. Santana then showers and gets dressed. While the girls keep busy in their rooms, the Latina cleans for a while before calling Brittany. As expected, the dancer happily accepts the invitation, wanting to meet Sofia. It doesn't take long for Brittany to arrive, only living a couple blocks away.

"So, where is she?" Brittany asks as she lets herself in.

"In her room." The dancer steps forward to go up the second floor but Santana stops her. "I'll call her down. She's shy and scared, and I want her room to be her safe place."

Brittany frowns. "She's worse than Chloe was."

"Chloe was just a baby. She was shy but warmed up to everyone pretty fast. This is different. Sofia is older and her mother's boyfriend hurt her." She explains.

"That's terrible. How can anyone hurt a child?" Santana shrugs. "I'll be in the living room. If she doesn't come down, don't force her."

Santana flashes a grateful smile. "I won't. I'll let Chloe know you're here too, I'm sure she'd love to see you."

"Of course she would. I'm her favorite Aunt."

Santana just snorts then goes upstairs. Outside Sofia's room, she can hear the little girl quietly playing with her toys. It makes Santana smile, knowing Sofia is slowly getting comfortable and being a normal child again.

Not wanting to eavesdrop anymore, Santana lightly knocks on the door, so she doesn't scare Sofia. She pokes her head in the room with a friendly smile.

"I'm glad you like your toys." Sofia blushes. "A friend of ours is downstairs and she really wants to meet you. But if you're not feeling up to it, you don't have to, ok?"

"Si." Sofia quietly says.

"Ok." Santana winks before closing the door. Outside of Chloe's room, she can hear the teen on the phone and almost waits to eavesdrop but decides against it and knocks instead.

"Yea?" Chloe asks.

Santana opens the door. "Aunt Brittany is downstairs if you wanna see her."

Chloe smiles brightly. "Cool. I'll be down in a minute."

Normally Chloe would run downstairs right away to see Brittany. Now that she isn't, the brunette suspects even more her daughter is pinning after some boy.

"Ok."

Santana returns back downstairs as she mumbles and swears in Spanish. Brittany chuckles and shakes her head at her old friend.

"What has you cursing in Spanish?"

Santana sits next to the dancer with a huff. "I think Chloe has a crush on a boy." She grumbles.

"Awe, your baby is growing up." Brittany teases.

Santana rolls her eyes. "It's not just that." She insists. "Whoever it is, he's changing her. She's become so defiant lately, and lying. She said she slept over Sarah's house so Sofia wouldn't feel overwhelmed but she came home this morning. Usually we have to drag her home. And now she's still on the phone even though you're here. She'll usually run right down whenever you visit."

Brittany shrugs. "Don't worry. She'll think he's the best guy ever now but once he fucks up, she'll come running to you and Quinn. It won't last forever." She assures her.

Santana sighs deeply. "I just wish it was sooner rather than later."

Brittany tries to comfort Santana some more when Chloe walks in.

"Hey Aunt Brittany." She smiles brightly with her arms open.

"Hi, sweetie. How are you?" Brittany hugs the teen.

"Good. I'm not looking forward to school starting though." Brittany and Chloe sit on the couch with Santana.

"I remember those days." Brittany reminisces. "I wish all I had to worry about was school starting and getting new clothes."

Chloe grumbles. "Don't make me feel bad for being a teenager." Brittany and Santana just laugh when the phone rings.

"That's probably Quinn." Santana says standing up. "I hope she's calling to tell me she sold that house." Brittany and Chloe continue to laugh watching Santana go into the kitchen to answer the phone.

"She's never going to sell that house." Says Brittany.

Santana glares at the blonde from the doorway. "It's nice to know you have faith in my wife and your best friend." Brittany just rolls her eyes at the Latina's dramatics, albeit with a smile.

"Aunt Britt, can I talk to you about something?"

Brittany nods, having a hunch she knows what the teen will ask. "Of course." Chloe hesitates, nervous about what she wants to ask. "Is it a boy?"

Chloe blushes. "Yea. His name is Jake. He's really cute and really nice, and he always makes me laugh but."

"But?" Brittany arches her brow.

"He's a senior. Mami definitely won't let me date him knowing he's older than me. But I really like him. And I was hoping you can convince her to let me go on at least one date with him and she could even meet him."

Unbeknownst to them, Sofia is siting at the bottom of the steps. Now dressed in one of her new outfits. She had been curious about their guest ever since she arrived but hadn't had the courage to check her out.

"Why are you asking me instead of Quinn?"

Chloe rolls her eyes. "She won't like that he's older than me either. Even if she didn't. she always takes Mami's side."

Brittany sighs deeply. "I can't make any promises but I'll try."

Chloe smiles brightly and hugs the dancer. "Thank you. You're so awesome."

Santana sudden walks in, brow arched but doesn't pry. "That was your Mother. She finally sold the house!" She smiles brightly then holds out her hand. "Cough it up, pay the piper."

Chloe rolls her eyes. "My money is upstairs." Santana raises her brows. "You want me to get it now?"

"Well, yea. You lost the bet, pay up, mija."

Brittany laughs while Chloe goes to upstairs. As she does, Sofia runs back to her bedroom before she's seen. Or so she thought. The teen fetches her money then lightly knocks on Sofia's door.

"Hey, I saw you run to your room. Why don't you come down? Aunt Brittany is really nice and fun. She's like a giant kid." She says with a laugh then sighs deeply not getting a reaction. "Look, I don't know what happened in your other home but, no one is going to hurt you here."

With that, Chloe returns downstairs. Now Sofia is having a internal debate with herself. Although she found the courage to go down earlier, she's not sure she's ready to meet yet another new person. Ever since she was taken from her home there's been a lot of changes and a lot of new faces, and none are the person she wants to see, her Mami.

Sofia misses her very much. Adults have explained why she hasn't seen her Mother, and although she understands, she still misses her. Even despite knowing her Mother let Marcos hurt her all the time. She's still her Mother and she wants to trust her again.

Santana reminds Sofia a lot of her Mami. Not only her looks but personality as well. It surprised the brunette. The pretty Latina had been very nice but she's also headstrong like her Mami used to be before she met Marcos.

Santana has made Sofia feel a little more comfortable in the new home but now that this new person has arrived, she feels herself revert back into her shell. Nonetheless, Sofia finds herself slowly making her way downstairs, out of curiosity, due to what Chloe had said. At the bottom of the steps, she realizes everyone has moved on to another room.

She cautiously goes down the hall and finds Santana alone making lunch and humming to herself. Looking out the back sliding doors, she spots Brittany and Chloe practicing what looks to be a cheer dance. Focusing back to Santana, Sofia realizes the woman is now quietly singing a traditional Spanish lullaby her Mami used to sing to her.

It makes Sofia smile, remembering a time before Marcos. Her Mami wasn't always happy being alone but at least she still had time to play with her daughter, and sing her to sleep before bed, or when she was sick. The Spanish lullaby was her favorite, even though her Mami couldn't really sing. But Santana can. Her voice reminds Sofia of a _Disney_ princess.

As Sofia continues to watch Santana from the doorway, the woman turns to the small island in the middle of the kitchen to peel and cut potatoes to make homemade french fries. Sofia tries hiding behind the wall but Santana still spots her.

"It's ok, sweetie. You wanna help me make lunch? I used to help my Mami all the time. She would let me peel potatoes, cut vegetables, or mix something. And we would sing my favorite Spanish lullaby."

Sofia pokes her head inside the room and flashes a shy smile. "I love that song." She whispers. "Mami sang it to me. But you sing better. Like a princess."

Santana blushes. "Gracias." She winks.

Sofia glances at the sliding doors then shyly joins Santana. "Can I help?"

"Of course. You can be my sous chef." Santana grabs a chair so Sofia can reach the counter then hands her the potato peeler. "Just be careful."

Sofia nods then starts peeling. "What's a sous chef?"

Santana smiles, feeling overjoyed the little Latina is finally opening up a little. "It's an assistant chef to the executive chef."

"Does executive mean boss?"

Santana chuckles. "Kind of."

The girls continue to prepare lunch in a comfortable silence. By the time Santana puts everything on the stove, Brittany and Chloe return inside. Sofia sticks by Santana's side, feeling more comfortable with the Latina.

"When will lunch be done? I'm already starving." Says Chloe.

"Half hour." Chloe sighs in disappointment. "Don't be so dramatic. By the time you're out of the shower and dressed, it should be done."

"Are you saying I take long showers?" Chloe narrows her eyes.

"Yup. Don't use all of the hot water." Brittany laughs as Chloe stomps upstairs. Santana then turns to Sofia. "Sofia, this is our friend Brittany. You don't have to be shy around her." She assures the child.

"Hi." Sofia whispers.

"Hey, cutie." Brittany greets back with a friendly smile. "You know, if I didn't know you weren't related, I would think you were Santana's daughter." Santana chuckles. "I'm serious, she looks so much like you. Quinn has her mini me and now you have yours."

"Have your what? **"** Quinn asks walking in the room. She then goes over to her wife to greet her with a kiss.

"Hi, mi amor. What are you doing home early?"

"I sold the house on Maple, remember? A few co-workers took me out to eat then my boss called and said I deserve to go home early." She explains.

"Wow, they must have really wanted to sell that house." Says Brittany.

"That would be an understatement." Quinn says, making Brittany laugh.

"We should celebrate, babe." Santana suggests as she checks on the food. "We can take the girls to the movie theater or something. Or we can call a sitter and you and I can celebrate."

"That's actually a good idea. We can take the girls to see the new _Beauty and the Beast_. I'll check the times." Quinn takes out her phone then realizes someone is missing. "Where's Chloe?"

"In the shower." Santana says.

"Mind if I tag along?" Brittany asks. "I love that movie."

"Have you seen it already?" Santana asks.

Brittany shrugs. "Yeah, so?" Santana just snorts then winks at Sofia seeing the little girl staring at her, making Sofia blush.

"We can make the eight pm showing. I'm gonna jump in the shower myself." Quinn sets her phone down then goes upstairs.

* * *

 **7:30pm**

They all pack into Santana's black Chevy Equinox. Arriving at the movie theater, both Santana and Quinn let out a loud sigh seeing a lot of people had the same idea.

"Do you still wanna see this movie?" Santana asks Quinn.

"Yea, and we're already here. We may as well."

Santana sighs deeply again. "Ok. Then how about I look for a place to park and you guys can get us a spot in line." She says pulling up to the front of the theater.

"What if you're not back by the time we get the tickets?" Quinn asks.

Santana shrugs. "It looks like there's a line inside, too. I'll find you."

"Alright." Quinn leans over to peck Santana's lips before getting out of the car, following Brittany and Chloe. However, Sofia stays in the vehicle. "What's wrong, sweetie? Do you wanna stay with Santana?" Sofia nods. "Ok, we'll meet you guys inside."

Quinn closes the back door then goes inside with Brittany and Chloe. As soon as they step inside, they're met with a long line of people waiting to get their tickets.

"Ugh, this is gonna take forever." Chloe groans.

"I'll go see why the line is so long." Brittany offers. The tall blonde heads to the front of the line to discover only two people are working the registers. Brittany shakes her head then returns to Quinn and Chloe. "They only have two people working the registers."

"What?" Brittany just shrugs. "This is ridiculous. Are any of the machines open?" She asks scanning the area, only to discover they too have a line. "I'm starting to think this was a bad idea."

Quinn looks out the glass doors to check if she can see Santana, however, it's getting too dark to see anything.

"Are we gonna miss the movie?" Chloe asks no one in particular.

"If we do, we'll just go home and come another time. I'm not waiting in lines all night." Says Quinn when a group a teens get in line behind them. Chloe recognizes them and curses under her breath, not going unnoticed by Brittany.

"Is that Jake?" She asks quietly so Quinn doesn't hear.

Chloe nods. "And his friends, Ryder, Marley, Spencer and Kitty." Chloe attempts to act cavalier that Jake is right behind her, but inside she's freaking out.

"Yo, Jake, look at all the creeps without kids trying to get into _Beauty and the Beast_." He laughs. Jake and their friends laugh along then out of no where Spencer pushes Jake into Chloe.

"Shit, sorry. My friend is kind of an ass."

"It's ok." Chloe waves him off, blushing.

"Who are you here with?"

"My parents, Aunt Brittany, and my little foster sister Sofia."

Jake looks surprised. "Your Moms' are fostering?"

"Yea. Why are you so surprised? I mean, obviously they adopted me." She points out.

Jake snorts, scratching the back of his neck. "Yeah, right. Sorry, I'm an idiot."

Chloe chuckles, feeling less nervous. "It's ok."

Jake was so busy talking to Chloe, he didn't notice his friends weave through the crowd to the second set of doors leading to the lobby.

"Come on, Jake." Says Spencer, holding the door open now. "Weston texted me, he's hooking us up with some tickets."

"Ok, hold on." Jake turns back to Chloe. "What movie are you seeing?"

" _Beauty and the Beast_."

Jake laughs. "Oh man, those guys are really gonna hate me for this but, I'll see you in there." He winks. And with that, Jake joins his friends when Santana finally walks in holding Sofia.

"Mi amor, I'm starting to think this isn't worth it. I just had to park the car across the street."

Quinn sighs deeply. "Yeah, I already told Chloe if we miss the time, then we're just going home." The blonde agrees then realizes Sofia is clinging on to her wife like a koala bear. "Is she ok?"

Santana nods. "As long as I don't put her down, she should be fine."

"Maybe we should go another day." Brittany suggests. "It might be too much for her."

"I don't wanna go another day." Chloe says surprising her parents. "Look, the line is moving faster now." She points out as the people in front of them move ahead further in line. "Maybe they opened more registers."

Santana narrows her eyes. "Why do you wanna see this movie so bad?"

"It was my favorite when I was little and, hello, Emma Watson." She lies.

"I thought _Snow White_ was your favorite?" Brittany asks, momentarily forgetting about the boy Chloe wants to see. The teen scoffs and rolls her eyes. "Oh, right. Nevermind, you're right, it was _Beauty and the Beast_."

"No, it was definitely _Snow White._ " Says Santana. "We had to watch it fifty times a day."

Chloe scoffs. "Whatever, I still wanna see this movie tonight."

Before Santana could ask anymore questions, the line continues to move. They can just see the registers when a man with dark hair and light eyes tries going through the line to leave.

"Excuse me, sorry." He says bumping into the people in front of them when he recognizes Santana. "Oh hey, Santana. I thought that was you."

"Hey, Brody. How are you?" She asks standing closer to Quinn.

"Pretty good. Just getting ready for the new school year. Hello, Quinn, how are you?"

"Fine, thanks." She forces a tight lipped smile. Brittany watches the exchange with curiosity and amusement.

"Who's this little one?" He asks referring to Sofia. The little girl hides her face in Santana's neck.

"This is Sofia. We're in the process of adopting her." Santana says rubbing Sofia's back.

Brody smirks, looking up and down at Santana with hungry eyes. Quinn glares at the man while Santana holds her wife's hand and squeezes it.

"That's really cool. It's a shame you're taken. It gives guys like me a hard time finding women like you." He flirts.

"You wouldn't stand a chance if she wasn't married." Quinn says, getting more angry. "She's a lady lover, and you're no woman." She says with an edge in her tone.

Brody glares at Quinn then turns to Santana. "What movie are you seeing? I can hook you up with some tickets. That way you won't have to wait in line." He offers.

"Thanks, but no thanks." Santana politely declines. "The line is moving now so we should be able to make it on time."

Brody shrugs. "If you insist. I'll see you Monday." He winks. And before Quinn or Santana could say anything, he's out the door.

"I really hate that guy." Quinn grumbles.

"Who was that, and why haven't I met him before?" Brittany asks as the line continues to move.

"He works with Santana at the High School." Quinn answers for them. "He started working there late in the school year last year, and he's always flirting with my wife."

"What an as-jerk." Brittany corrects herself, remembering Sofia is with them. "The good looking ones usually are, though."

"He knows I'm married. But I told Quinn if he tries anything more than flirting, she has permission to slap him."

Brittany laughs. "Quinn always was the genius slapper."

Santana laughs along then kisses her wife's cheek. The line then moves faster and before they know it, they're sitting in a dark, crowded movie theater with drinks and popcorn. Santana and Quinn are sitting together. Sofia sits on Santana's lap, and Chloe is sitting next to Brittany, however, the teen is scanning the room for Jake and his friends when she feels popcorn hit the side of her face.

Chloe turns to the direction the popcorn came from to see Jake a few seats down the same row. Jake waves, causing Chloe to blush. The teen waves back, thankful it's too dark to see her red cheeks. Looking closer, she realizes he's trying to tell her something. However, because it's so loud, he points to an open seat next to him then waves her over. Chloe nods then turns to her parents.

"Mom, can I sit with my friends? They're just over there." She points down the row.

"Those friends better not be boys." Santana speaks up before Quinn gets the chance.

"A couple of them are but I wanna sit with Marley and Kitty."

Santana looks down the row then shrugs. "It's ok with me."

"Go ahead, honey. Just meet us in the lobby when the movie is over."

* * *

 **10:00pm**

Sofia didn't last the entire movie, but she watches more than Santana and Quinn thought she would. Once the movie was over and Santana and Quinn waited for Chloe in the lobby, there was slight drama when Santana thought Jake and Chloe stayed back to make out. Now they're dragging themselves into the house, tired and exhausted.

Brittany says goodbye to the small family before driving home. And Santana carries Sofia upstairs to her bedroom with Quinn following.

"I'm telling you, Q. I saw the way he was looking at my baby. If they weren't kissing during the movie, he definitely wanted to." Santana carefully lays Sofia in bed while Quinn grabs some pajamas then hands them to her wife.

"I know you don't like the idea of Chloe dating, but it's inevitable, babe. She's not a kid anymore."

"That doesn't mean I have to like it." Santana slowly takes Sofia's shirt off then as she goes to put on the pajama shirt, something on Sofia's stomach catches Santana's eye, causing her to pause.

"What's wrong?" Quinn asks.

Santana groans. "There's scars on her stomach. It looks like someone burned the words _"_ bad girl" with a cigarette into her skin." As Quinn inspects the scars herself, Santana silently counts to ten.

"We knew this was going to be hard." Quinn rubs Santana's back.

"I know." The Latina sighs before putting the pajama shirt on followed by the pants before standing in front of her wife. "That doesn't mean I have to like it." She repeats.

Quinn flashes a sympathetic smile then connects their lips in a loving kiss. "Lets go to bed. I'm tired and I know you're tired."

The couple exit the room together then Quinn closes the door but leaves it slightly ajar to let in some light from the hall nightlight.

* * *

 **10:30am**

Santana is the first one to wake up. The brunette carefully gets out of bed so she doesn't wake up her wife then rushes to the bathroom to empty her bladder and to brush her teeth. On her way downstairs, she checks on Sofia only to find the bed empty.

For a moment Santana thinks Sofia could be in the bathroom, but realized the door is open. Then thinks she may be downstairs already until she takes a closer look at the bed and sees a small foot poking out from the bottom.

Santana crouches down to discover Sofia had must of woken up in the middle of the night and slept underneath the bed instead. The Latina crawls over to the bed then reaches over to rub Sofia's back until she wakes up.

"Hey, beautiful. What are you doing under here?" Sofia pouts, avoiding Santana's gaze. "It's ok, you're not in trouble. I just wanna know why you wanted to sleep under your bed instead of in it. Do we need to get you a new mattress, is it uncomfortable?"

Sofia shakes her head. " _I wet the bed_." She whispers in Spanish, unsure of how Santana will react.

Santana flashes a sympathetic smile. "That's ok. It was just an accident, huh?" Sofia slowly nods. "I'm going to put your sheets and comforter in the washer, and you can come out and help me, if you want." Sofia remains silent so Santana gets up from the floor then starts stripping the bed.

Once the sheets and comforter are removed, Santana takes them downstairs to the laundry room when she realizes Sofia had followed her. Santana puts everything into the washer then adds the soap before turning to Sofia.

"Where did you put the pajama's you wore last night?"

"In my closet."

"Can you get them for me, por favor? I need to wash them." Sofia nods then quickly retrieves the pajama's. "Gracias." Sofia watches Santana put the soiled pajamas in the washer before turning the machine on. "Are you hungry? Quinn and Chloe should be waking up soon. We can make everyone some eggs and bacon."

"Ok."

Sofia follows Santana into the kitchen and the older Latina drags a chair in front of the counter for Sofia. As they prepare and cook breakfast, the pair sing their favorite Spanish lullaby together. When Quinn does wake up and finally joins them in the kitchen, she can't help but smile at the sight. Seeing her wife with Sofia makes Quinn happy they decided to go through with the adoption process.

"How long have you two been up?" She asks, finally making her presence known.

"Not long." Santana answers for them. "Is Chloe up?"

Quinn snorts as she starts making coffee. "Of course not. School starts tomorrow, she's going to get as much sleep as she can before then."

"That reminds me. We may have to register Sofia into McKinley Elementary since she was probably going to Lima Heights."

"We should do that today, then. Before the cookout." Quinn sits at the island and flashes a friendly smile toward Sofia, earning a shy smile in return.

After breakfast, the trio get ready for the day then Santana leaves Chloe a note, letting her know they're going to register Sofia to McKinley. The Latina also gives the teen permission to walk to Brittany's house if she gets bored, or they take too long, so long as she remembers to lock all the doors and not to forget her house key.

"Did you leave Chloe a note?" Quinn asks from the drivers side of her black Chevy Malibu while Santana catches up to them, then notices Sofia frowning at her booster seat as she struggles to buckle it. Santana nods while helping Sofia.

"Yeah. I told her she could go to Britt's if she wants to, too. I don't know how long we'll be." Santana gets into the passenger seat and buckles her seat belt before Quinn pulls out of the driveway.

"We're only going to the school. It shouldn't take us that long."

"I know but I want to buy a few last minute things for the cook out."

"Ok. Where are we going?"

"We just need some more pool toys after the other ones we bought were destroyed by that damn dog." Santana grumbles like a child.

Quinn chuckles gently squeezing her wife's knee. "I think you loved those stupid pizza loungers more than the kids did."

"I love pizza, and they were good to tan on."

Quinn just shakes her head, albeit with a smile. By the time the trio arrive at McKinley Elementary, there's already some employees rushing to get the school year ready. Going to the office, Sofia sticks by Santana, silently observing everything with caution.

"Hi, I'm Quinn Fabray-Lopez, and this is my wife Santana." Quinn says with a friendly smile. "We're here to register our foster daughter, Sofia Alveraz."

The woman with silver hair behind the counter smiles in return. "Yes, we were expecting you. Lisa called." She answers their unasked question. "Come with me. I'll show you to the principle's office."

Sofia unconsciously holds Santana's hand as they follow the woman to the office. Another woman, younger than the receptionist, but older than Santana and Quinn. She's been principle for years and has always reminded Santana of Olivia Benson from her favorite crime show drama.

"Mrs. Jennings, Mrs. And Mrs. Fabray-Lopez are here." The new receptionist announces.

Mrs. Jennings smiles up at the married couple. "It's good to see you again. Come, make yourself comfortable." She gestures toward the couch off to the side of her desk.

"Finally got a couch?" Santana asks settling Sofia on her lap for comfort.

Mrs. Jennings can't help but laugh as she walls around her desk then drags one of the chairs to sit in front of the trio, with a stack of papers. "Lets just say you weren't the only one complaining how uncomfortable the chairs are." Santana smiles as an i-told-you-so. The principle just continues to smile. "I'll admit I'm surprised you're adopting again."

"She's not nearly as bad as Chloe, trust me." Santana jokes.

The principle flashes a friendly smile toward Sofia but continues talking to Santana and Quinn instead, seeing she's shy. "How did you manage to find a mini Santana?" Santana blushes.

"We just got lucky." Quinn winks at her wife.

"Well, you remember all the paperwork. I already have Sofia's physical from Lisa, so don't worry about that." The principle says sliding the pile of papers over to them on the coffee table between them. The women make small talk while Sofia waits patiently, and even gets a pop as a reward from the principle before they go.

Santana and Quinn praise the little girl for her patience, too, as they return to Quinn's car, to encourage Sofia to come out of her shell more. At the pool store, there's a summer end sale so Santana takes full advantage buying any inflatable lounger and toy available.

"Do we really need this many, San?" Quinn asks struggling to get the bags into the trunk. Santana comes from behind Quinn with a couple of bags in her free hand, then drops Sofia's hand before helping Quinn shove all the bags inside the trunk.

"See? We got them all to fit." Santana gloats.

"Barely." Quinn grumbles. "Can you call Chloe? I already tried in the store but she wouldn't answer." Quinn climbs into the drivers side while Santana helps Sofia with her belt again, then joins her wife in the front with a groan.

"I'm sick of her with this phone business. She's texting on it all the time but can't answer when we call. If she keeps this up, I'm giving her my old flip phone I had in high school."

Quinn snorts. "You still have that?"

Santana blushes waiting for Chloe to answer. "Maybe."

The realtor laughs finally pulling out of the crowded parking lot. "What other stuff have you saved?"

Santana shrugs shyly. "The notes you and I would give each other during math, the notes we passed to Brittany, a few movie stubs from our first date, stuff like that. It's in my safe I keep on my side of our closet." She explains.

Quinn kisses the back of Santana's free hand. "I told you, you have a big heart."

Santana continues to blush then recovers as Chloe finally answers her phone. "Where are you?" There is a short pause. "Ok, we're on our way home. We should be there soon, and you better be showered and dressed. As soon as we get there, you're helping us get everything ready for this cook out." Another pause. "Te amo. Bye."

"She's home?" Santana nods slowly as she seems to be thinking about something. "What?"

"I thought I heard someone else's voice whispering." Quinn sighs deeply, knowing what Santana is implying. "If it's a boy-"

"Lets not jump to conclusions, ok?" Quinn cuts her off.

"Fine." Santana reluctantly agrees.

At the house, the couple once again struggle with all the pool stuff Santana insisted they needed. Chloe seems to be innocently watching tv in the living room dressed and alone.

"What is all that?" Chloe asks while Santana and Quinn put all the boxes on the love seat.

"Your Mami insisted we need five thousand pool loungers and toys." Quinn grumbles rubbing her sore arm and hand muscles.

"Then I guess I'll be the one pumping them with air." Says Santana.

Quinn nods. "You wanted them, you pump them with air. I'm gonna get the food ready. Chlo, wanna help me?"

"Yeah." Chloe follows Quinn into the kitchen then Santana turns to Sofia.

"Wanna help me?" Sofia nods. "Ok, just carry one out at a time. These are heavy."

Sofia does her best as she follows Santana to the back patio. The small, unique family set everything up for the party together then watch tv until their guests start arriving. Chloe and her friends are first to jump in the pool while Santana and Quinn mingle with their High School friends on the patio.

Two of their friends, Puck and Sam, have volunteered to grill the meat, giving Santana and Quinn the freedom to relax and watch the girls. Even though Sofia hasn't left Santana's side.

"I know it's only been a few days but how is she adjusting?" Rachel asks.

Quinn shrugs. "Still shy." She gestures to Sofia now sitting in her wife's lap.

"Yeah, she's been pretty attached to me." Santana agrees. "We bonded over food and singing. She's my sous chef."

Knowing they're not done talking about the child, Puck attempts to be nice, and get Sofia distracted so she doesn't feel embarrassed being talked about.

"Hey, Sofia, I could really use some help over here. Sam is useless." He jokes.

"Useless?" Sam asks with a laugh, knowing what his friend is doing. "Alright, I see how it is. You think I'm useless, then Sofia can take over." Sam says before sitting next to his wife Mercedes.

"It's ok, sweetie, go ahead. I'll be right here, I'm not going anywhere." Santana assures her.

Slowly, Sofia slides off Santana's lap while keeping her eyes on Puck. Once she's standing next to him, the man hands her a large serving plate.

"I just need you to hold this for me while I put the burgers on it, ok? Easy enough, right?"

Sofia just nods silently then watches Puck stack the hamburgers on the plate. While he does, Sofia can now really smell the seasoned, cooked meat. It's a moment everyone has often.

A certain sight, smell, or even touch, will take them back to their childhood, or for Sofia, a dark time period in her life. Being raised in an abusive home, those moments happen more often for Sofia. And this time is no different. The little girl is taken back to the old and small house in Lima Heights.

 _On one particular hot day, Gabriella, Sofia's Mother, thought it would be a good idea to cook dinner outside on the grill. With Marcos' help, of course. Sofia also helped, carrying the paper plates while Gabriella carries the hamburgers. However, Gabriella's plan quickly falls apart. Marcos can't light the old girl the Latina's Father got her years ago._

 _"It's too damn old, this thing will never light again." Marcos grumbles as the phone inside the house rings._

 _"Just keep trying. I'll be back."_

 _While Gabriella answers the phone, Sofia stays put at the patio table and continues watching Marcos struggle to light the grill. The man curses under his breath, not caring Sofia can hear him. He almost gives up when the grill finally lights as Gabriella returns. Marcos smirks in victory toward the Latina._

 _"Got it."_

 _Gabriella flashes a weak smile. "That's great."_

 _Sending her tone, Marcos frowns. "What's wrong?" He has a hunch, since Gabriella has been working more often ever since he was laid off._

 _"My boss. He's short staffed. A couple of new kids didn't show." She explains._

 _Marcos groans. "You're going in for overtime."_

 _"I have to. I need the money. Especially if we want a new grill." Marcos remains silent as Gabriella kisses his cheek. Then Gabriella says goodbye to Sofia, promising she would make it up to her before leaving._

 _Marcos glares at Gabriella's back then turns to Sofia. "Grab me the burgers." Sofia struggles a little but manages to give Marcos the meat. He puts them on the table he set up next to the grill._

 _"Can I help?"_

 _Marcos shrugs. "Sure." He lets Sofia put the burger on the grill since its short enough for her to reach. "I like mine raw. So in a couple seconds, you'll have to flip it." He instructs, then wait a few seconds for some of the meat to cook. "Ok, now." Sofia attempts to flip the burger, however, the patty is too big and heavy for her and it falls apart then falls below the rack. "Damn it, watch what you're doing!"_

 _"Lo siento." Sofia frowns._

 _Marcos groans. "I'm sick of this shit. Your Mother constantly leaves me to take of your ungrateful, selfish ass, treating me like a built-in babysitter, all for some minimum wage job." Marcos groans once again as his anger builds up even more. "You need to be disciplined more, that's the problem. Just because you're little, your Mother lets you get away with too much." He thinks out loud._

 _Without warning, Marcos roughly grabs on to Sofia's arm then puts her little hand on to the burning hot grill rack, making Sofia scream in agony. Although it felt like forever for Sofia, it was just a few seconds that he pressed her hand into the hot metal._

"Sofia." Puck repeats himself for the third time as Sofia returns to reality. The little Latina looks to the other adults to see they're watching on with concern. "You ok, sweetie?" Puck asks, but Sofia remains silent.

He glances in Santana and Quinn's direction but only gets a shrug in return before they resume their discussion, but also keeping an eye out for Sofia. Puck turns back to the little Latina and takes the now full plate of burgers from her. As he does, he notices some grease has dripped from the plate on to her wrist. So Puck grabs a napkin near by and gently holds her wrist, causing Sofia to shout at the top of her lungs and pull her hand away.

Puck puts his hands up in surrender facing Santana and Quinn. "I was just trying to clean the grease off her."

Before they can comfort her, Sofia runs off.

"What was that about?" Mercedes asks.

"I'll go check on her." Santana volunteers, leaving her wife to explain what's going on.

"Is she going to be ok?" Tina, another high school friend, asks.

"Yeah, Santana will get her to calm down." Quinn waves her off. "We haven't been able to tell you guys how different this adoption is."

"Different, how?" Rachel asks with concern.

Quinn sighs preparing for the response. "Lisa told us they suspect, no, they know, she was abused by her Mother's boyfriend." She explains, getting a collection of gasps in return. "She's in jail now, and Lisa asked us to foster her until the adoption papers go through."

"So, what just happened right now," Mercedes says, "she had a flashback?"

Quinn nods. "I guess you can call it that. She's had quite a few of them since she's been here."

"That's terrible." Rachel says. "A child feel nothing but unconditional love." The group pf friends nod in agreement.

"Chloe, girls, the burgers are ready." Quinn shouts to the teens. Chloe walks over to the table wrapped in a towel, shivering slightly from the light breeze touching her wet skin.

"Where's Mami?"

"She went to get Sofia, she should be back soon." Quinn explains. Chloe just nods then joins her friends. Slightly concerned for her foster sister.

* * *

Santana checked the laundry room first but was surprised to discover the little girl wasn't there. So the next logical place to look is Sofia's bedroom. Santana looks just about every spot available to hide when she finally finds the girl under her bed and rolls her eyes at herself for not looking there first.

"Hey, beautiful. What are you doing under here?" She asks laying on her stomach.

 _"I got scared."_ Sofia whispers in Spanish. " _He grabbed my arm like Mami's boyfriend did when he hurt me."_

Santana flashes a sympathetic smile. "I know, but no one here is going to hurt you. No one will ever hurt you like that again, I promise." Sofia doesn't seem too convinced, but Santana silently promises she'll prove it to her. Even despite knowing they might not be able to adopt her. "Why don't you come back down with us. There's a burger with our names on them." She winks, attempting to cheer Sofia up and lighten the mood.

Hesitantly, Sofia joins Santana, going back downstairs and outside with the rest of the group to eat. Once everyone has eaten, the teens change into clothes. At the end of the day, Chloe asks if they can make smores by the fire pit.

"As long as you and your friends clean everything up." Santana says.

"We will." Chloe says rushing into the house to get everything. The adults gather chairs around the fire pit for everyone when Chloe and her friends return.

"Sofia, have you ever had smores before?" Tina asks. Sofia just silently shakes her head.

"I can show you." Quinn offers, wanting to get Sofia to feel more comfortable with her.

Sofia watches intently as Quinn shows and explains to the little girl how to not only assemble a smore, but to roast a marshmallow as well. After trying the sticky junk food for the first time, Sofia asks Quinn to make her more, and even falls asleep in the blonde's lap, after coming down from her sugar high. By the time everyone has had enough, and it's time for Chloe's friends to go home for school the next morning, the girls have left a mess.

"Didn't I say Chloe and her friends had to clean this up?" Santana grumbles as she and Quinn clean everything up while the girls get ready for bed.

"Their parents got here before they could, and I don't want Chloe cleaning all of this by herself."

"Ugh, fine."

Once they finally finish cleaning everything up, the couple return inside to get ready for bed themselves then they say goodnight to each of the girls before trying to get some sleep. However, it seems Santana has plans of her own as Quinn attempts to sleep, Santana trails chaste kisses to her neck.

"Baby, I don't think I'm awake enough." Quinn says as Santana's hands wander to her chest, and plays with her nipples.

"Hm, mi amor, school is starting tomorrow. Who knows when I'll have the energy to make love to my wife, or just have rough, amazing sex." Quinn snorts. "I think we should take advantage of this."

Quinn laughs then finds enough energy to connect their lips in a searing kiss, and make love to her wife.

The following morning, Santana and Quinn are first to wake up as their alarm blares through the master bedroom. After getting dressed for work, they greet each other with a loving kiss, since their teeth are brushed, then wake up the girls for school. Now Chloe and Sofia are siting at the kitchen table eating scrambled eggs while Quinn and Santana have coffee and something quick to eat since they're running a little late.

"How are you feeling, sweetie?" Quinn asks Sofia. "Are you nervous?" Sofia silently nods. "It'll be ok. The first day at a new school is always nerve racking but once you make some friends, it'll get easier." She assures her. Sofia looks to Santana and the Latina winks with a friendly smile. "We should get going. We're going to be late."

Since Santana and Chloe are both going to the High School, Chloe goes with Santana, while Quinn drops Sofia off on her way to work. Rushing out the door, they miss the phone ringing.

At the Elementary, Quinn had to sign a few more papers before Sofia is escorted to her classroom. It's already full of kids and Sofia feels overwhelmed, especially as the teacher stands her in front of the class to introduce her to everyone before showing her to an empty desk next to a little blonde who looks a lot like Brittany.

"Hi, my name is Brooke. My Aunt Brittany told me you might be in my class." She says with a friendly smile.

"Hi." Sofia says above a whisper, siting at the desk next to the blonde.

"Don't be scared. A lot of kids here are nice, but if they're not, Aunt Tana will kick their butt. One time this mean kid threw a dodge ball at my head. My parents talked to the principle but he was still mean to me so Aunt Tana yelled at everyone in the office until they gave him detention. Now he's not mean to me anymore." She explains.

Throughout the morning, Sofia learns going to a new school is more difficult than she thought. Not only is it hard being the "new kid" to all of the other children, but they're learning things her old school hasn't covered yet, and it's making Sofia feel very small and stupid. It also doesn't help that she has a heavy Spanish accent.

By the time recess rolls around, Sofia just wants to go home. However, not the one with the Fabray-Lopez home, her small home with her Mami.

While the other kids play together, Sofia opts to be by herself in a tunnel. However, a group of four boys walks over to her, ending her short lived peace and quiet.

"You can't hog the tunnel all recess." One of the boys says with his arms crossed. "We like to play in there, too." His friends nod in agreement, glaring at Sofia. However, to avoid them, Sofia just crawls to the other end of the tunnel. "Hey, I said we want to play in the tunnel now. You have to leave." He continues, walking to the other side with his friends when Brooke approaches them.

"You better not be being mean to my friend, _Theodore_." She says his name with emphasis, knowing he hates it.

He glares at her. "My name isn't Theodore, it's Leo!"

Brooke rolls her eyes. "Whatever, leave her alone or I'll get my Aunt Tana to yell at _you_ instead."

"She's not taking turns on the tunnel." He argues.

"You only want it cause she's in it." Brooke continues. "Go play stupid football with your stupid friends." With that, Leo and his friends turn the opposite direction to play football in the soccer field with some other boys. Brooke sits next to Sofia inside the tunnel.

"I don't like this school." Sofia suddenly says. "I miss my Mami. I wanna go home."

Brooke frowns. "But I heard Aunt Brittany talking to my parents on the phone last night. She said your Mom's boyfriend was a bad man. Why would you want to go back?"

"I just want my Mami."

"Your Mami is in jail, cause she let the bad man hurt you."

Sofia glares at her then climbs out of the tunnel. "My Mami is going to come back for me. She told me. She promised she would be back for me, and Marcos won't hurt me again, then I won't have to come here anymore." With that, Sofia runs off to another part of the playground to be by herself.

* * *

At the High School, Chloe is used to her Mami dropping her off now, so she's not embarrassed by it. However, she does hate it when all the boys in school check her Mami out, and glares at anyone who does.

"How does Mom not punch them?"

Santana follows her daughter's line of vision as they walk toward the school and snorts. "She would get arrested for assault since she's an adult and they're children." Chloe continues to glare at them.

"I hate boys sometimes."

"Oh yeah? I wish you'd hate them all the time."

Now Chloe directs her glare towards her Mami instead. "Not funny."

Santana shrugs as they walk into the school. "Who said I was trying to be?" She asks as Sarah, Mia and Annie approaches them.

"Hey, coach." Sarah greets. "Mind if we take Chloe?"

She shakes her head. "No, go right ahead. I have to get to my classroom and pass out schedules and locks. I'll see you later, mija. Te amo." Chloe may not be able to speak Spanish, but she does understand whenever her Mami says I love you.

"Love you, too." She says before going off with her friends.

"When are you going out with Jake again?" Mia asks as they walk slowly to their homeroom.

"I don't know. We haven't talked since I ran into him at the movie theater."

"You guys still owe us for using us as an excuse to your Moms'." Sarah reminds her, yet again. "And you better make sure your Mami never finds out."

Chloe snorts. "If you guys weren't so afraid of her, it wouldn't be a big deal."

"How are _you_ not afraid of her?" Annie asks. "You live with her." Too distracted by their conversation, none of the girls noticed Santana has been eavesdropping after talking to the principle on her way to her classroom.

"Don't let her fool you, girls." She says, making Mia, Sarah, Annie, and even Chloe jump. "She's afraid of me." Santana winks. "Get to class, girls. Chloe, we'll talk later."

Being a Spanish teacher, Santana's classroom is on the other side of the school. So the Latina thinks about the discussion she and her wife will be having about this Jake boy with their daughter when Brody interrupts her thoughts.

"Trouble in paradise?" He asks with a smug grin.

Santana narrows her eyes. "Not that it's any of your business, but no. Why are you asking?"

Brody gestures toward his face, then points to Santana's. "You look angry."

"Oh, that would be my daughter's doing. Apparently when she said she was staying at a friends house, she was really going out with a boy."

Brody laughs. "Oh, to be a teenager again."

Santana scoffs. "I'd rather not relive that."

Brody looks surprised. "You really wouldn't relive the glory days?"

Santana stops for a moment in the middle of the hall. "I'm going to take a wild shot in the dark and assume you were the stereotypical, popular jock who got any girl he wanted." Brody just grins. "I'll take that as a yes." Brody snorts. "Well I was the foreign student with a heavy Spanish accent, and to top it off, a lesbian. I'm happy to put those days behind me."

Santana continues to walk while Brody follows her until she reaches the classroom and takes out her key the principle gave her, along with the kids schedules and locks for their lockers, to unlock the door.

"So I take it High School wasn't fun for you." Santana just scoffs as she struggles to unlock the old door. "You know, I bet if we went to the same High School, you wouldn't of had to worry about any of that."

"Oh, really?"

Brody smirks. "Not at all, cause you'd be with me. You wouldn't have anyone picking on ya for your accent, and you definitely wouldn't be gay." He says the end with a bit of an edge, not going unnoticed by Santana. As she continues to struggle unlocking the door. Brody then gently replaces her hands with his own and easily unlocks the door with a smug smile. "See? It's good to have me around."

Santana narrows her eyes. "Did that make you feel like a man just now, helping the lesbian you can't have open an accident door?" Brody rolls his eyes with a deep sigh. "I could guarantee my High School career would have been hell if we went to the same school. I'd have to pretend to be attracted to a narcissistic jock, and his equally narcissistic friends, talking about how awesome and hot they are, while bullying the other lesbians."

Brody frowns. "Whoa, what's with the hostility? I was joking, we're friends, I thought making a stupid joke would make you laugh."

"We're not friends, Brody. We're just friendly to each other, you more than me. That's why my wife doesn't like you."

With that, Santana takes her key then closes the door behind her. Santana sets everything up on her desk to pass out to her homeroom students, as they file inside. She greets everyone then gives out all the stuff they'll need for the new school year before the first period bell rings. Since she doesn't have a class in the morning, Santana checks her messages on her phone. One from her wife, and another from Lisa telling her to call. Worried what it might be about, Santana calls the agent first instead of checking the text from Quinn.

 _"Hi, Santana. I did call your house phone this morning but I guess I missed you guys. I'm calling because I got a call from a lawyer by the name of Ricardo Gomez. His client, and daughter, Sofia's Mother, wants to fight for Sofia. Call me."_

Santana feels her heart sink into her stomach. In such a short amount of time, she already loves and cares for Sofia, and she knows Quinn feels the same way. Although she's still introverted and shy toward them, they've slowly started to form a bond with the little girl. The small progress they've made with her will have gone to waste if she goes back to live with her Mother, especially if Gabriella plans to have Marcos live with them again when he gets out of jail.

Thinking of the man getting out of jail, Santana wonders how Gabriella was able to get out. Knowing little about the system through Lisa, and even her own father being a lawyer, the bail for her would've cost too much for the woman to afford, but then she remembers Lisa has said her father is a lawyer as well.

"We're so fucked."

* * *

 **A/N: Thought, questions, concerns? Don't be shy, leave a review. Although I don't rely entirely on reviews to update, it definitely helps as motivation, especially these days. Since Glee has been over for a few years now, I think motivation is lost on here for this fandom so not many good stories are being updated. I'm not just saying this for myself, but other writers on here, too. Even a review like, "great story, keep it up" is a big help. So keep that mind whenever you read a story. Thank you.**


	2. Chapter 2

For the Love of a Child

 **A/N: (Warning; violence. I don't own any of the Glee characters) Just fyi, I've been imagining Esai Morales as Ramiro Lopez, and Daya's mom (idk if I spelled that right) from OITNB. Also, no one has actually asked but in case there might be any confusion, Sofia has a different last name because she has her father's and Gabriella changed hers to her maiden name. I also want to let you guys know if you read the flashbacks, since Sofia speaks fluent Spanish, it's ok to assume she's speaking Spanish with her mom and even Marcos. In my mind they are, but it's also ok if they're not to you. Does that make sense? Lol. And I promise I will also update my other stories, in case anyone was wondering. I was just further along in writing this chapter so I updated it again. Enjoy!**

* * *

Chapter Two

"This is bad." Santana says as she paces the room while her wife watches from the bottom of their bed.

The rest of the morning went pretty slow for Santana, but after lunch, the day just flew by. Santana had called Quinn during lunch, and now that they're home, and the girls are in the kitchen doing homework, they have time to talk.

"We're going to need a really good lawyer." Quinn says. Santana nods then stops pacing and looks to her wife. "We have to, Santana. He's the best lawyer in town, and we need him to win this case."

Santana scoffs then continues to pace. "He will never take this case on, baby. I haven't even talked to my parents since High School graduation, and that was just to tell them I was moving to New York and never seeing them again."

"Now we live in Lima, and we've seen them around town. Time has changed. You know we need his help. It doesn't hurt to ask, at least then we'd know if he would be willing to help us." Quinn argues.

Santana sits next to her wife with a sigh, and lays her head on the blonde's shoulder. "He still hasn't met Chloe. Mami hasn't either. No one in my family has." She reminds Quinn.

Quinn wraps her arm around the Latina. "I know, but we don't have a choice. If he won't help us, we could lose Sofia."

Santana groans. "How do you know that, though? The other lawyer could be terrible."

"Didn't you say her lawyer was Ricardo Gomez? If we could afford it, we would be asking him instead of your Dad."

Santana sighs heavily. "I just-"

"I know."

Santana picks her head up then leans her forehead against her wife's before connecting their lips in a slow, but loving kiss when Chloe walks in.

"Gross." She cringes, making the women jump apart.

"Finished with your homework?" Santana asks with a pointed look.

Chloe sighs, knowing where this is going. "Yeah."

"Good. Where's Sofia, is she still working on her homework?"

"No, she's in her room playing, I guess."

Santana stands up along with Quinn then points to the bed. "Sit. We need to have that talk now." Chloe grumbles as she takes a seat then crosses her arms defensively. "Why did you lie to us about spending the night at Sarah's house with Mia and Annie?"

Chloe shrugs. "I wanted to hang out with Jake and his friends but I knew you'd say no."

"What does that tell you then, Chlo?" Santana asks getting upset. Quinn talks quietly with the brunette then turns to Chloe.

"You're grounded with no phone, or internet, unless it's for _Netflix_ or school for three weeks. This is strike one, Chloe. I don't think you'll want to find out what happens when you reach three. Go to your room, I'll be there in a minute." Chloe nods then rushes to her bedroom. With a sigh, Santana and Quinn retake their spots at the bottom of the bed. "We have to call your Dad."

Santana nods slowly. "You're a part of the family now, he's your Dad, too."

Quinn flashes a weak smile. "Lets hope he sees it that way."

Santana groans once again as she retrieves the house phone from the night stand, then sits back down next to her wife as she dials the number. While she waits for someone to answer, Santana gives Quinn another kiss for encouragement.

"Mija, is that really you?" A deep voice on the other end asks in shock.

"Si, Papi." Santana says, holding Quinn's hand.

"It's good to hear your voice again." He says with a relieved sigh. "How have you been, you're not in some kind of legal trouble, are you?" He asks, worried.

"I'm not getting a divorce, if that's what you're asking." She says with an edge. Quinn rubs her wife's knuckles with her thumb, attempting to calm the Latina.

The man sighs deeply. "That's a discussion for another day. I don't want to argue with you, mija. It's been so long since we talked, I just want to have some peace." He pleads. "Are you in any legal trouble?" He asks again, and Santana explains what's going on. "I'll help you, for free." He surprises her.

"You'll help?" Santana asks in shock. Quinn breathes a sigh of relief.

"Si." He nods. "We may have some disagreements, but you're a very good Mami, and no child should have to live in fear. I'll help make sure she doesn't have to live with that woman and her boyfriend." He explains.

"Gracias, Papi." Santana smiles.

"De nada. It was nice talking to you again. Don't be a stranger anymore. Your Mother would like to talk to you again soon, ok?" He asks.

Santana quietly groans. "Si." With that, Santana hangs up the phone then puts it back on the nightstand.

"What did he say?" Quinn asks while Santana starts pacing again.

"He said Mami would like to talk to me soon. He made me feel guilty for not talking to them in years, even though I had every right to after what they said to me."

"I know, but, baby, you need to calm down. Do you wanna go to the gym?"

Santana stops pacing with a huff. "Yeah, I'll just be a couple hours. I need to punch something."

Quinn flashes a sympathetic smile then pulls her wife into her embrace. "I know. Just please be back before dinner, and text me when you get there."

"I will."

Santana pecks Quinn's lips a few times then breaks the embrace to get dressed and packs extra clothes to go to the local gym. While Santana does that, Quinn goes to Chloe's bedroom. The teen was just turning off her laptop as she walks in.

"I hope you were doing some last minute homework." Quinn arches her brow.

Chloe looks away, guilty. "I was messaging my girl friends to let them know I'm grounded for three weeks."

Quinn nods collecting the cell phone and laptop. "Thanks for being honest. You can have your laptop if you can prove to us you need it for school, that's it, got it?" Chloe nods. Quinn pauses at the door. "Why did you feel like you had to lie to us, Chloe? You've never lied to us before." She says disappointed, making Chloe feel guilty.

"H-He's a senior." Chloe says looking at the floor.

Quinn scoffs, shaking her head, but doesn't say anything and just walks away. The blonde puts the cell phone and laptop into her safe in the master bedroom closet, then checks on Sofia.

* * *

The drive to the gym becomes a blur she's so angry. She's angry with her Father, for making her feel guilty, and she's angry with herself for letting him get her angry. In the gym, Santana strides up to the desk where a blonde around her age greets the Latina.

"Hey, San. It's been awhile since we saw your face around here."

Santana sighs, signing herself in. "Yeah, it's been awhile since I wanted to punch something." Santana sets the pen aside then looks up at the blonde with yet another sigh. "How've you been, Dani?"

"Good. I'm still working on getting out of this town. I don't know how you were able to come back. I'm itching to get to the city."

Santana shrugs. "It was fun in theory. In reality, rent was a bitch to get every month, I hated my job, and I hated the people. We had no choice but to come back home."

Dani nods slowly. "Would you do it again if you could?"

Santana takes a moment to give it some thought. "I guess if I could do it better next time, I would."

Dani smiles. "Fair enough. There isn't a lot of people today. Feel free to hog the punching bag." Dani gives the brunette her key to her locker.

Santana snorts. "Thanks." She says taking the key.

The brunette walks through the large gym to get to the lady's locker room. Santana unlocks her locker to put in the bag of towels, toiletries, and clean clothes. She also takes out a pair of wireless _Beats_ headphones and her cell phone before going back out to the gym and to the only punching bag in the place.

There's about five other people working out, but Santana tunes them out as she listens to music and goes to town on the punching bag, releasing all of her anger. While in her zone, she doesn't notice a familiar face sneaking up on her until it's too late. The man pokes her sides, causing Santana to jump. She rips off her headphones and turns to the person who interrupted her work out.

"What the hell, are you following me?" Santana glares at Brody.

He puts his hands up in surrender then shrugs. "If you didn't stop coming, you would remember that I work out here everyday after school."

Santana nods in realization. "Right." She goes to put her headphones back on when Brody speaks up again.

"So what made you decide to finally come back?"

Santana shrugs. "Just some personal stuff, and no, there's no trouble in paradise."

Brody smirks. "I actually wasn't going to say that, but it's interesting that's where your mind went." Santana just rolls her eyes. "Want a work out buddy?"

"Not if you're just going to flirt with me, or check me out." Santana gestures to her body. "The goods are for the wife's eyes only." She warns.

Brody laughs. "I think I can control myself."

"Mmhm." Santana says, not convinced. "And I think you'll work out with me no matter what I say."

He puts his hands up in surrender, once again, with a smile. "It is a free country. i can work out where I please."

Once again Santana rolls her eyes as she puts on her headphones and continues working out. For the next couple hours as she gets her anger out on the punching bag, she can occasionally feel a pair of eyes on her and she'll glare at the man until he looks away.

When Santana is finished, she takes a shower in the lady's locker room, then changes into the clean clothes she brought before putting the dirty ones in her bag and signing out to leave.

"Feel better?" Dani asks.

"A little. I'd probably feel a lot better if Brody wasn't around to ogle me."

Dani rolls her eyes. "He's such a pig."

"Tell me about it."

"I'm right behind you, ladies." Brody says with a hint of a smirk.

Santana shrugs. "I know." Brody just chuckles with amusement. "I'll see you later, Dani."

The Latina brushes past Brody without a glance. She throws her bag into the passenger seat then drives back home with a lot still on her mind. In the drive way, Santana waits a moment before going inside.

"Baby, is that you?" Quinn calls out, and Santana curses under her breath.

"Si, mi amor. I'm sorry, I forgot to text, or call. I just had a lot on my mind." She says walking into the living room.

"I figured that was the case, but I was still worried." Quinn says with a frown. Santana sits next to her on the couch and pulls Quinn into her chest as she lays down on her back.

"I'm sorry, I'll make it up to you." She says brushing her fingers through Quinn's hair. "Where are the girls?"

"Chloe is in her room. She hasn't come out since I took away her cell phone and laptop. I think Sofia is back in her bedroom playing. She was just down here eating. You missed dinner, by the way. I put yours in the microwave." There's a short silence between the couple.

"I can't believe she lied to us." Santana sighs. "She never lies to us."

Quinn rubs Santana's back. "He's a senior. The boy she lied about hanging out with."

Santana grumbles. "I knew it was for a boy, didn't I tell you, baby? My mexican third eye is never wrong."

"I know. I should've listened to you, babe, I'm sorry."

Santana kisses Quinn's head. "It's ok. You can make it up to me." Quinn chuckles. "Do you think Papi has some ulterior motive?" She suddenly asks, surprising Quinn.

"What?" She asks with a laugh.

"That's the only explanation I can think of why he would help us, for free, might I add."

Quinn shrugs. "Maybe he just wants to help his daughter. Maybe after all this time guilt has gotten to them." She suggests.

"Maybe." Santana says unconvincingly.

Suddenly they hear Sofia shouting from upstairs, followed by Chloe shouting for them. The couple jump up from the couch then rush upstairs to Sofia's bedroom where both girls are. Sofia is on the floor, screaming and thrashing about with her eyes closed, while Chloe is siting next to her, trying to calm the brunette.

"She fell asleep playing with her doll." Chloe explains. "I think she's having a night terror."

Santana nods then crouches next to Chloe. "Ok, sweetie, thank you. Go back to your room. Your Mom and I will take care of her." She assures the teen. Reluctantly, Chloe does as she's told.

"What are you going to do, San? I think I read you shouldn't wake someone while they're having a night terror."

Santana scoops Sofia into her arms then rubs her back while rocking the brunette.

"I want my Mami, I want my Mami." Sofia begins to cry over and over. Even as she finally wakes up and pulls herself out of Santana's embrace, and creates some space between them. "I want my Mami."

"Pequeña, I know this is hard and it's not easy to understand but you can't be with your Mami right now. You're staying with us because she let a bad man hurt you." She attempts to explain.

Sofia shakes her head. "She said she would be back for me. The policemen took me to Lisa, and then my Mami came and she told me she would be back for me, and Marcos won't hurt me again cause he doesn't live with us anymore."

Santana turns to Quinn with the same worried look.

"Get out." Sofia demands. Shocking the women. "I want to be alone." She says more softly.

Any other time Santana and Quinn would lecture Sofia about her attitude but for now they let it slide, knowing she's just scared, confused, and angry. Instead, the couple return back downstairs and Quinn follows Santana into the kitchen so they can continue talking.

"You know, I'm pretty sure Jake is the reason Chloe wanted to see that movie." Quinn thinks out loud.

Santana scoffs. "Why would a jock want to see _Beauty and the Beast_?"

Quinn shrugs. "He probably asked Chloe what movie we were seeing and convinced his friends to go in."

Santana thinks about it for a moment then groans. "Then we have to talk to Brittany."

Quinn looks at her wife confused. "Why?"

"Remember she tried covering for her waiting in line for tickets? Saying _Beauty and the Beast_ was her favorite when Chloe was little. Brittany knows _Snow White_ was always her favorite. She was the one babysitting for us."

"We'll talk to her tomorrow, then. Just have her come over after school."

* * *

 **10:00pm**

Sofia and even Chloe are already in bed sleeping by the time Quinn and Santana decide to call it a night. Santana turns off the living room lights while Quinn double checks the front door is locked before turning on the security system.

Going upstairs, the couple check on the kids. First Chloe, then Sofia.

"She's as snug as a bug in a rug." Santana whispers to Quinn. "Maybe she's finally getting a little more comfortable." She says full of hope.

"Maybe." Quinn whispers back. "Let's go to sleep. We have an early morning."

Unbeknownst to the couple, Sofia was half asleep and overheard them. The little girl is having difficulty falling asleep. She misses her Mami more than ever lately, and tonight she misses her Mami's not so great singing. Although, as hard as she tries, eventually sleep does take over the little girl, however, it's not in a peaceful dream.

 _She was just having a bad dream, that's all. It's late for a seven-year-old to be up, but Sofia watched a scary movie with the babysitter and now she can't sleep. Gabriella is in her bedroom, but she's not alone. Marcos has already warned Sofia to stay in her room._

 _Sofia doesn't understand why, though. She just wants to cuddle with Gabriella until she falls asleep like she always does, and Sofia knows they're not sleeping. She can hear her Mami screaming followed by loud thumping against the wall, and grunting sounds coming from Marcos._

 _Sofia tries going to sleep again but she can't. She just knows the monster from the movie is in her closet just waiting for her to fall asleep. The young Latina runs across her room and closes the door behind her. Running into the master bedroom, Gabriella and Marcos quickly cover themselves up._

 _"What did I tell you about coming in here?" Marcos glares at Sofia._

 _Gabriella puts on a nearby robe, then climbs out of bed. "Are you having a nightmare, baby?" She asks walking toward her daughter._

 _"Si. There's a monster in my closet."_

 _Marcos sighs heavily. "This is the third time that sitter let her watch a scary movie. I've had enough of this, Gabbie. Just bring her back to her room and, you, if you come in here again, then you'll have to deal with me."_

 _Gabriella brings Sofia back to her bedroom and tuck her into bed. She then even reads a book and sings a lullaby before returning to the master bedroom. Sofia has fallen a_ _sleep, however, it doesn't last long once the wind starts picking up, causing the b_ _ranches by her window to hit the glass, scaring Sofia._

 _Dispite his warning, Sofia is too frightened to be by herself, so the little brunette jumps out of bed and returns to the master bedroom, making Marcos more angry._

 _The man takes a deep breath, then puts on his boxers under the blankets and takes Sofia back to her bedroom before Gabriella could respond._

 _Marcos closes the door behind him then surprising Sofia, he helps her into bed and even tucks her in. But then he holds each side of the blanket and pushes down so it presses tightly over Sofia's chest. She tries calling out to her Mother, but it's difficult to breathe._

 _"When I tell you not to do something, you listen, understood?" Sofia nods. "Y_ _ou'll stay in here or I'll do much worse." He warns then even kisses her temple. "Snug as a bug in a rug." Marcos returns to the master bedroom, leaving Sofia to cry herself to sleep, like nothing happened._

 _"What did you do? Is she crying?" Gabriella asks as Marcos climbs into bed._

 _"I just told her what would happen if she didn't stay in bed. She just doesn't like to be disciplined." Marcos starts kissing her neck and Gabriella smiles then turns her head to catch his lips in a searing kiss, dropping the subject._

"Mami!" Sofia wakes up, panting from the night terror. Unbeknownst to her, she had been whimpering and kicking in her sleep, causing the blankets to fall on the floor.

Santana suddenly rushes in with Quinn behind her. Both worried and concerned. However, Santana keeps her distance, seeing how frightened Sofia is.

" _You're ok."_ She says in Spanish to comfort her.

 _"_ I want my Mami." Sofia cries.

"I know and I know I'm not your Mami, but I can be your friend. And Quinn, too." Sofia looks back to Quinn standing in the door way. The blonde flashes a friendly smile. "We just want to help you, sweetie." She says getting closer as Sofia calms down. "Do you want me to stay in here with you until you fall asleep? I'll just sit right here."

Santana sits on the floor next to the bed. Sofia has an internal debate with herself. Despite wanting her Mami, she's still scared from her dream. And her only options are to be alone, or let Santana, whose already brought semi comfort to her already, stay. Making her decision, Sofia tucks herself under the covers.

" _You can stay._ "

Santana turns to Quinn with a smile. "She wants me to stay. I'll be in as soon as she goes to sleep." She promises.

"K." Quinn goes over to give Santana a kiss then returns to the master bedroom.

Santana gets more comfortable on the floor then hesitantly reaches over and runs her fingers softly through Sofia's hair, like she does for Quinn and Chloe.

"Do you want to talk about your nightmare?" Sofia shakes her head. "Ok, that's ok." She assures her. They sit in comfortable silence until Santana remembers something. "When I had a nightmare when I was little, my Papi used to tell me stories. Would you like to hear one?"

Sofia hesitates but nods anyway. "Si."

Santana smiles then starts telling one of the many stories he would tell her as a little girl. It makes the Latina feel nostalgic. And she hopes now that her Father will be helping them fight for custody of Sofia, she can reconnect with her parents again, and they can finally understand why she married Quinn.

Santana can tell Sofia is into the story but eventually the little girl just can't fight her sleep any longer, and closes her eyes. Santana kisses her forehead then returns to the master bedroom where her wife is sleeping. She carefully climbs into bed then spoons Quinn from behind and easily falls asleep.

* * *

Like every morning, the Fabray-Lopez family fall into their daily morning routine. After breakfast, and getting dressed and ready for the day, Santana drives to the High School with Chloe, while Quinn drops Sofia off at the Elementary on her way to work.

Because there's cheer practice today, Santana and Chloe go to the football field together where the practice will be held along with the football team. Brittany is already there waiting for everyone else on the bleachers.

"Britt, come down. The girls are on their way and I wanna talk to you before practice starts." Santana knows Quinn will want to talk to the dancer, too, but the Latina at least wants Brittany to know they want her at the house after school. So while the team begins to show, she pulls Brittany aside.

"Is everything ok?" The dancer asks with concern.

"Yeah, I just wanted you to know Quinn and I want you to stop by after school. We have to talk to you about Chloe."

"Ok." Brittany says confused.

"Everyone is here now. Let's get started. I want another trophy for my office."

 **3:00pm**

After school, Brittany follows behind Santana and Chloe in her car to the house. Pulling into the drive way, Quinn pulls into the empty spot next to her wife. With Quinn's help, Sofia climbs out of the car then goes straight to do the door to wait for someone to unlock it.

Santana and Quinn greet each other with a kiss then hold hands to the front door. Quinn gets out her key then steps aside to let the kids in first.

"Homework first." Quinn says walking in behind Santana and Brittany.

"Can I do mine upstairs?" Sofia asks Santana.

"Sure. We'll be in the living room talking to Brittany if you need help." Sofia nods then goes to her bedroom. Chloe sticks to the kitchen, knowing she'll be sent there anyway. "Chlo, you can go in your room, too." Confused, the teen still does as she's told.

"So why do you guys want to talk about Chloe with me?" Brittany asks taking a seat.

Santana and Quinn sit on the love seat. "We know you tried covering for her at the movie theater. She wanted to see that movie because of a boy, and you know how old he is, don't you?" Santana asks.

"Yes, and I was going to tell you but then Chloe asked if I could help with one of the competition routines, and it slipped my mind. I didn't cover up for Chloe. I just wanted her to think I was cause I was hoping she would eventually tell you why she had to lie about seeing that movie." She explains.

"You couldn't just tell us that?" Santana asks, narrowing her eyes.

"When could I?" Brittany asks with a laugh. "During the movie? Santana, you nearly hit me the last time I tried talking during a movie." Quinn snorts while Santana rolls her eyes. "Or would you like it if I told you in the car?"

"Ok, fine. Point taken." Says Santana.

Quinn chuckles to herself rubbing Santana's back. "Do you wanna stay for dinner?" She asks Brittany.

Brittany shrugs. "Sure. Now I don't have to cook tonight."

Santana snorts as Sofia walks in sporting a pout. "What's wrong, pequeña?"

Sofia glances shyly toward Brittany then leans closer to Santana. " _I need help with my Reading homework."_

 _"_ Quinn _could help you with that. I'm better at Math."_ Sofia turns to a confused Quinn. "She needs help with her Reading homework, mi amor. I told her I'm better at Math."

"Do you want me to help?" Quinn asks Sofia. She nods. "Ok, I'll see what I can do." Quinn says standing up. "I'll be back to help you with dinner, baby."

"It's ok. Brittany can do it." Santana says with a laugh.

Brittany groans. "Fine."

 **5:00pm**

Everyone had just finished eating, Santana and Quinn decided Chloe can do the dishes as part of her punishment. Santana is brushing Sofia's now wet hair, while talking to Quinn and Brittany at the table, when someone rings the doorbell.

"I'll go see who it is." Quinn volunteers.

"So, Britt, when _are_ you going to start dating again?" Santana asks the dancer.

Brittany shrugs. "It's only been almost two months since I broke up with Rory."

"Maybe you should date Brody, so he'll stop flirting with me."

The tall blonde scoffs. "I don't think anyone should date him." She says then notices Quinn and, Ramiro, Santana's father. The man smiles brightly seeing his daughter.

"Mija, it's so good to see you. Come, give me a hug." Santana gladly welcomes his embrace with a content sigh.

"It's good to see you, too, Papi." She smiles. "I've missed you." She admits under her breath, so only he can hear.

" _I know. I've missed you, too. That's why I'm taking this case, so we can spend more time together and I can help this child._ " He says in Spanish, knowing the blonde's in the room can't understand him.

"Papi, this is Chloe." Santana finally introduces the man to his granddaughter.

Chloe flashes a friendly smile and waves as she finishes the dishes. "Hi, nice to finally meet you." She says with a slight edge. Santana glares at the teen as a warning.

Ramiro just flashes a tight lipped smile and nods.

"Hello, Mr. Lopez." Brittany greets the man. "How've you been?"

"Hello, " He pauses trying to remember her name. "Brittany." She nods, confirming he's right. "I've been doing alright. The wife still drives me crazy sometimes." He jokes.

Brittany just puts on a fake laugh, then points to the other room. "I guess I should be going. I've got some dance routines and cheers to go over. It was nice seeing you, Mr. Lopez. San, I'll see you tomorrow. Quinn, I'll let myself out. I'll see you again, girls. Behave." She says pointing her finger at both girls, already trying to be more strict.

With Brittany gone, Quinn tells the girls to go to their bedrooms when Ramiro finally notices Sofia siting on Santana's lap.

"Is this Sofia?" He asks Santana. She nods. "She looks just like you when you were that age, mija."

Santana blushes as the kids go to their bedroom. Then the adults sit around the kitchen table. Santana and Quinn on one side and Ramiro on the other.

"Not that I'm not happy to see you here, Papi, but what are you doing here?"

Ramiro folds his hands on the table. "I need to talk to you two about this case. Now, you stand a pretty decent chance of getting the adoption to follow through. If Gomez wasn't her lawyer, I'd say we'd have a better shot, but at the same time we can use this to our advantage." He begins to explain.

"How?" Quinn asks.

"Gomez and his daughter don't have-their relationship is rocky." He says glancing with guilt in Santana's direction. "Gabriella is the black sheep of the family. Since she was a teenager she has always dated the 'bad boys', and Gomez has always bailed her out of trouble with these boys until she stopped calling, and started dating Marcos Sanchez."

"Apparently he doesn't like Marcos, and Marcos doesn't like him. Especially when he tried giving him quit a lot of money until he could find another job. Marcos was insulted and isolated Gabriella away from her family." He continues.

"I still don't understand how this can be an advantage for us." Quinn speaks up again.

Ramiro holds up his finger as to silently tell her to be patient. "This means she has a record." He explains. "It's not much but for now maybe we can get supervised visits with a social worker. I'll try to get more on her for the actual custody trial."

"What do you mean supervised visits?" Santana asks.

"Throughout this process, Gabriella requested to see Sofia to the judge. He hasn't approved, but after I leave here, I'm going to make a point with him to have supervised visitation, which might lead to several visits. That's what the record is for, to show the judge Gabriella shouldn't be trusted alone with her daughter again."

Quinn shakes her head with a scoff, while Santana remains silent.

"Try not to worry, mija." He tries comforting his daughter. "I'll do whatever I can to make sure you adopt Sofia."

Santana flashes a weak smile. "Is that all you needed to tell us, or is there more bad news?" Quinn holds the Latina's hand and rubs the back of it with her thumb, not going unnoticed by Ramiro. But the man pretends he doesn't see.

"I do want to talk about how Sofia is adjusting."

Quinn arches her brow. "Why, you don't think we can handle it?" She asks with a slight edge in the tone of her voice. Santana squeezes her hand.

"My opinion doesn't matter. The judge will want to know how she's adjusting to help make his decision on who should gain custody. If Sofia doesn't feel comfortable here, that could sway his decision in Gabriella's favor." He explains.

"Well she's gotten pretty attached to Santana. She's the only one who can calm her down whenever she gets scared."

Ramiro smiles at his daughter. "I always knew you'd make a wonderful Mami." Santana blushes once again. "But if Sofia is inconsolable," the man reaches into his pocket for a business card and hands it to Santana. "I recommend a child therapist. She's the best in the business, she's worked with many abused children."

"Gracias." Ramiro smiles. "Is that all?" Santana asks.

"For now. I'll keep you updated on everything that happens, though, ok?"

Santana nods. "Si, Papi. I'll walk you out." Quinn stays behind to absorb the information while Ramiro follows Santana to the front door. "Gracias, again for helping us."

Ramiro flashes another tight lipped smile. "De nada." He says gently pulling Santana into another hug. "Your Mother asked me that I remind you to call her, can you please do that for me? She's driving me loco."

Santana snorts stepping out of the embrace. "Si, tomorrow I'll call her."

Ramiro points his finger in a joking manner. "You better." Santana smiles. "Take care, mija." Ramiro turns around then pauses before turning back to Santana. "Oh, and Chloe is beautiful but I noticed she looks a lot like-"

"Quinn." Santana finishes his sentence.

Ramiro nods. "Are you sure she didn't-"

Santana rolls her eyes. "Of course not, Papi."

He smirks. "I'm just teasing. Of course I know she didn't, but this feels like old times, huh?"

Santana smiles. "Yeah, it does." Ramiro winks and with that, he gets into his car and drives back home. Santana closes the door and turns around to find her wife behind her.

"What do you think?" Quinn asks. "You think he can really pull this off?"

She shrugs. "He's the best in town, remember?"

Quinn sighs deeply. "He still doesn't like me." Santana crosses her arms but remains silent. "He said he would do whatever he can to make sure _you_ adopt Sofia. He probably doesn't even think of me as Chloe's Mother."

"Actually, he just made a joke about Chloe being biologically yours." Santana says with a hint of a smile.

Quinn huffs. "He still didn't acknowledge that I'll be adopting Sofia, too."

"I know, baby. I'll talk to him." She promises. "For now, let's go upstairs and make out."

Quinn chuckles as Santana wraps her arm around the blonde as they go upstairs.

* * *

Upstairs, Chloe gets bored watching _Netflix,_ and since she can't go online, or talk to any of her friends, she decides to see what Sofia is doing. Chloe softly knocks on the door then opens it further to find Sofia playing with her old barbies.

"Hey, I was just wondering if you wanted someone to play with since I'm grounded and can't talk to any of my friends. And _Netflix_ is only entertaining for so long." Sofia remains silent, deciding if she wants company, then shrugs. Chloe then sits on the floor with the girl. "This doll was my favorite when I was your age." The teen picks up a Barbie with blonde hair and blue eyes. "I always thought she looked like my biological Mom."

There's a short silence.

"Do you still miss her?"

"I don't actually remember her. She died when I was just a baby, both of my parents did." Chloe admits. "But my Moms' kept a photo of them they got from Lisa, when they adopted me. I keep it in my nightstand and once in a while I'll look at it. Not as much as I used to, though. When I was younger I wanted to learn more about my parents, so I would call Lisa, like everyday." She says with a laugh. "But when I realized who my real parents were, I stopped calling her."

Sofia glares at the teen. "My Mami isn't dead. She told me she would be back for me." She repeats for the third time. "Mami said it will just be us again so Marcos can't hurt me anymore."

Chloe nods slowly. "I hope you're right. I wouldn't want to see you go back to your Mom only to get hurt again. But if that happens Mami and Mom will be there for you." She puts down the Barbie then picks up another that looks like Sofia. "She looks like you."

Sofia just watches Chloe brush the Barbie's hair until she speaks up again. "Why don't you know how to speak Spanish?"

Chloe shrugs. "I tried to when I was little but I thought it was too hard so I asked Mom if I could stop taking lessons. Mami was kind of upset but didn't push it." She explains.

"My Mami said she wanted me to learn my heritage. When I learned how to talk, I spoke Spanish." Sofia brags.

Chloe pushes the jealousy bubbling up in her gut, opting to focus on Sofia finally opening up a little to her since she arrived. And instead, she plays Barbie with the little brunette, not realizing Santana and Quinn were watching.

"Playing nice, girls?" Quinn asks as the couple walk in.

"Were you two just eavesdropping?" Chloe narrows her eyes up at her parents.

"A little bit." Says Santana. "But we came in here to talk to the both of you." Along with Quinn, Santana sits at the edge of Sofia's bed. "Sofia, your Mami does want you back." Sofia smiles. "But until we know for sure that Marcos can't hurt you again, you're going to stay with us."

"You can still see your Mami, though." Quinn continues to explain. "We don't know when it'll start yet, but she'll have supervised visitations. Do you know what that means?"

"No." Sofia shakes her head.

"It means a social worker will have to watch over your visits." Quinn continues.

"Will Mami be coming here?"

"Si." Santana says.

Sofia smiles brightly and even does a little dance. Although they're happy to see her smiling for once, the married couple still worry Gabriella won't part ways with Marcos.

* * *

 **Friday 4:00pm**

Three days later, Santana and Quinn find themselves preparing for Gabriella's supervised visit with Sofia. They don't have to do much, Quinn just wants the house to be clean so she assigned everyone with at least two rooms to vacuum and dust.

"Do we really have to clean the entire house?" Chloe grumbles to Santana as the older Latina was assigned to clean the kitchen and living room.

Santana sighs deeply wiping down the counters. "Yes. You know how your Mother is so just humor her, por favor."

"Why?" Chloe continues to whine like a child. "It's not like we have to impress this bitch."

Santana points her finger at the teen. "Language."

"I'm sorry but she is. How could she let someone hurt her daughter and call herself a Mother? Now she gets to see Sofia like nothing ever happened. It's messed up."

Santana frowns then walks around the island and has Chloe sit at the table with her. "What's going on with you? Why do these visitations upset you this much?" Chloe shrugs. "You never said anything before now, has something changed?"

Chloe sighs deeply. "I guess because I've been grounded, and I don't have much to do, I've been playing with Sofia more. And-I don't know. When she's not scared, she's just a normal, sweet little kid. I don't want her Mother to take her back if she's going to get hurt again." She explains.

Santana flashes a weak smile. "You care about her." She says as a statement rather than a question. However, before Chloe could respond, Quinn walks in with the house phone in her hand as it rings.

"It's your Mother." She says holding out the phone to Santana. The Latina shakes her head, making Quinn huff in frustration. "Babe, she hasn't stopped calling cause you told Ramiro you would call her Wednesday. Talk to her."

Santana takes the phone just when it stops ringing and smirks in victory. "Ops, I missed her." She says without concern.

"Baby, you have to call her back. She obviously really misses you."

"Why, why do I _have_ to call her back?"

Quinn scoffs. "Because she's your Mother. What if Chloe was giving you this silent treatment, how would you feel?"

Santana sighs deeply then groans. "Fine, I'll call her. Later, after this bitch leaves."

"Hey, if I can't call her a bitch, then it's only fair that you can't either." Chloe points her finger toward the Latina.

"Whoa, when did you call Gabriella a bitch?" Quinn asks.

Santana waves her off. "You were cleaning upstairs."

"Which I have to finish dusting. Have you two finished your rooms?"

"I was dusting in here before Chlo distracted me with this bitch talk."

Quinn crosses her arms. "Can you finish, please?"

Reluctantly, Santana continues dusting. "Chloe is right, mi amor. They'll probably just be in the living room the whole time. Why does the whole house need to be cleaned?"

"It's not for Gabriella, not all of it, anyway. The house hasn't been thoroughly cleaned since spring and I'm using this opportunity to my advantage." She explains.

"Ok, but as soon as I'm done here, I'm not cleaning anymore. These cleaning products are giving me a headache." Says Santana. "Where's Sofia?"

"Still cleaning her room, but she should be finished by now." Quinn turns to Chloe. "Are you done?"

"Yeah."

Suddenly the door bell rings and Sofia is running down the stairs. The trio meet the little brunette just as she reaches the bottom step.

"Mami!" She shouts, smiling brightly.

Santana opens the door right when Sofia reaches it. An older version of Santana scoops Sofia into her arms while a middle aged man stands behind the woman. Gabriella speaks Spanish quietly to Sofia while eyeing Santana and Quinn.

"Hello, I'm Thomas Goodwin, the social worker that will be supervising every visit." The man introduces himself.

"Which will be when, again? I don't think Ramiro ever told us." Quinn says. "Do the days change every time, or should we always expect a visit every Friday?"

"Every Friday, is what we agreed on." He confirms. "Why don't we go inside." Santana and Quinn step aside to let Gabriella and Thomas inside while the woman still holds Sofia in her arms.

"You can go in the living room." Quinn points out to the room. Thomas and Gabriella follow the blonde into the room. "Do you want anything to drink, or a snack?"

"No, thank you." Thomas says as he sits on the recliner while Gabriella takes the couch and quietly talks to Sofia. Santana and Chloe remain quiet as they stare intently at Gabriella.

"Santana, Chloe, why don't we go in the other room, give them _some_ privacy." Gabriella scoffs as Santana and Chloe follow Quinn into the kitchen.

"I don't like this." Santana says looking into the kitchen, keeping on eye on Gabriella.

"I know. Hopefully we won't have to deal with this for long." Says Quinn. Then a moment of comfortable silence passes until Chloe speaks up.

"Are you guys going to watch them every time she visits?" She asks in a bored tone.

"Probably." Santana says with a shrug.

Chloe sighs deeply. "I'm going to my room then, since I'm still grounded."

While Chloe goes to her bedroom, Santana and Quinn opt to stay in the kitchen to keep an eye on the Mother and daughter in the living room until it's time for Gabriella to leave. When the time comes, Sofia watches her Mother leave with a deep pout and doesn't even say goodbye before running upstairs to her bedroom.

"You still think it's a good idea to keep my baby away from me?" Gabriella asks Santana and Quinn from the front door way.

"I'll keep her away from you so long as you plan on bringing that asshole back into her life." Santana says crossing her arms while Quinn glares at the woman next to her wife.

Gabriella remains silent then finally leaves.

"I really hate that woman." Santana says turning to Quinn. The blonde wraps her wife into her arms and holds her tight.

"I know. I don't like her, either. But right now we should be more worried about Sofia. She looked really upset, we should check on her."

Santana pecks Quinn's lips a few times before taking her hand and going upstairs. Sofia is laying in bed, looking at the ceiling and holding the Barbie that reminds the little brunette of her mother.

"Hey, pequeña." Santana gently greets. "I know it was hard saying goodbye but you'll see her again." She attempts to make her feel better, however, Sofia remains silent. Santana looks to Quinn, silently asking for help.

"And next visit will be better because the wait won't feel as long, and you can even play outside if you want to." She suggests, getting Sofia's attention. "You don't have to be stuck inside with her all the time. For as long as it stays nice out." She adds.

Sofia moves head just enough for the couple to recognize she's nodding. "I wanna be alone now."

They leave Sofia alone and hope she'll start to feel better soon, but as the next two weeks goes by, Sofia continues the silent treatment and moping around. While they're worried it'll be this way after every visit, they're also worried Gabriella and her Father will use it against them in court, as an example Sofia should stay with Gabriella.

And while they were worried for Sofia, Chloe was chomping at the bit. Playing with a little kid and watching _Netflix_ wasn't entertaining for long. However, no matter how much she complained, and went on about still being home on a Friday night, Santana and Quinn won't give in.

While the teen sulks in her bedroom, Sofia is watching tv in the living room but she doesn't seem to be enjoying it. The little girl's behavior has been concerning Santana and Quinn, and the couple feel helpless.

"I feel so bad for her but I don't know what to do for her anymore." Santana says as they watch Sofia from the doorway.

"Remember what your Dad said? Do we still have the number for the therapist he recommended?"

Santana nods. "I put it in the draw next to the phone." She says keeping her eyes on Sofia. "But I thought it was to help her with the trauma from the abuse she endured?"

"It is. But maybe if she knew we want to help, she'll start talking to us again, or start talking to _you_ again. She didn't do much talking with me, there was more shaking or nodding her head."

Santana flashes a sympathetic smile. "She'll come around." The Latina assures her. "And hopefully this therapy will help. I'll go call her."

The brunette calls Saundra Roberson, the child therapist and gives the woman clip notes of their situation. Saundra happily agrees to make an appointment, just to see if Sofia would like to continue going.

"When's the appointment?" Quinn asks walking into the kitchen.

"Tomorrow." Quinn then picks up the phone and holds it out to Santana. The Latina looks at her wife confused. "What?"

"Gabriella left, call your Mom." Santana groans. "Santana Marie." Quinn scolds with her mom-voice.

"Fine." Santana reluctantly agrees. Taking the phone from Quinn, she gently pulls the blonde toward her to whisper in her ear. "That kinda turned me on maybe we ca-"

"Don't even try it, Lopez. You're not going to put this off any more." Quinn pushes her away.

Santana narrows her eyes. "It's Fabray-Lopez, actually." Quinn rolls her eyes, albeit with a smile while Santana dials the number. It only rings twice when Santana attempts to hang up but Quinn stops her, and reluctantly, the brunette waits.

"Mija, is that you?" A hopeful Maribel asks.

"Si." Santana says with some regret, starting to wish she called sooner. The Mother and daughter continue catching up. In the middle of their conversation, Santana gets a text from Chloe, then Maribel begins talking about Sofia.

"Your Papi is really working hard on this case for you."

"I know, Mami. Quinn and I are so grateful for Papi taking on the case at all, let alone for free. I honestly wasn't expecting that." There's a short pause on the other end.

"We may not agree on everything but keeping children safe is something we'll always see eye to eye on and we know you're a wonderful Mami to Chloe from what we hear and Papi was able to witness."

Santana sighs deeply. "I wish you both could see it more often. I would love for Chloe to know her grandparents better. And Sofia, if we win the case."

"It's your Father, of course you'll win." Maribel jokes, lighting the mood a little. "I would like that, too, but you know how we feel about Quinn." Santana groans. "We're fine getting along for now for Sofia, but our views won't change over night."

"So what are you saying?" Santana asks getting upset.

"I'm _asking_ to be patient with us. We miss you so much and we want to get to know Chloe and Sofia, but we're going to be slow getting used to our daughter being married to another woman. We'll meet you half way, only if you meet us, too." She explains.

"Wow, I-um-I can do that." She says getting a little chocked up. " _We_ can do that." She corrects herself looking to her wife. Quinn holds the Latina's hand and rubs her knuckles seeing her getting emotional.

"Great." Maribel smiles. "It was nice catching up. Te amo, mija."

"Te amo. Bye."

Santana ends the call then hugs Quinn for a moment before letting go and wiping a few escaped tears.

"Is the tears a good thing or a bad thing?" Quinn asks with concern.

"Good." Santana says with a smile then tells her wife everything.

"That's not just good, San, that's great. They're not just trying for this case, they want to try for real, it's what you always wanted."

Santana's smile brightens. "I know. I was actually hoping Sofia could bring us closer."

"Yeah?" Santana nods. Quinn looks at the clock. "Speaking of, we should get her ready for bed."

Santana scoffs. "You know how that'll go. That girl does not like to brush her teeth."

Quinn chuckles as the couple go upstairs. "Chloe was the same way."

"She wasn't nearly as bad." Santana stops at Sofia's closed door.

"She's just not used to having a routine." Quinn points out. "I called Lisa the other day, during my lunch break. What they _do_ know about the abuse isn't much, but apparently Gabriella worked so much Sofia was left with Marcos most of the time, and he never had a night time routine." Quinn assures the brunette.

Santana opens the door to find the light lamp on the night stand on, while the big light is off, and Sofia has fallen asleep from watching a movie. However, the couple quickly realize it's not a good dream. Sofia is quietly crying while still in a deep sleep. Both Santana and Quinn rush to the little girl and Santana scoops Sofia into her arms then gently rocks the child.

" _It's ok, sweetie. You're safe."_ Santana says in Spanish quietly into Sofia's ear to be sure the child can hear her. Santana repeats herself until Sofia stops crying and goes back to sleep.

"Let's just change her into a pair of pajama's." Quinn suggests. "We can let her skip brushing her teeth for one night."

While Quinn grabs a pair of pajama's from Sofia's dresses, Santana carefully lays Sofia back on to the bed. Quinn returns with a pair of pink pj's then the couple dress Sofia before going to their own bedroom.

Unknown to them, Sofia had watched them leaving the room, peaking through one cracked eye. When the door is shut, Sofia lets out a content sigh. She doesn't want to admit it but, she loved being held by Santana. The woman held her with such love and comfort, it made Sofia feel safe. The young Latina lays back down and goes to sleep thinking if she can't be with her Mami, then maybe staying here doesn't have to be bad.

* * *

The following morning is hectic as everyone rushes to get ready for school and work. A late night thunder storm caused their power to go out, and as a result, the alarm on the clock didn't go off. They're in such a hurry, Santana and Quinn don't even have time to say goodbye to one another, let alone share a kiss.

At the high school, Santana still continues to rush as she has some last minute work to do, like grade a few Spanish tests. The Latina zips past any co-workers, and even some friends, and goes straight to her classroom while Chloe goes to her locker.

As she does every school morning, the teen grabs every book for all her morning classes. After closing the locker, she's met with Annie, Mia, and Sarah.

"You'll never guess what happened at Jake's party Friday night." Annie says with excitement.

Chloe groans. "He had a party?"

Sarah rolls her eyes. "It's high school, there's always a party on Friday night." She points out the obvious. "That's not the point. The point is while you were grounded, we got into his party and even had a conversation with the man." She dramatically states.

"He was asking _a lot_ of questions about you." Says Mia.

Chloe's eyes widen in surprise and shock. "Like what, what was he asking?" She says casually, trying to hide her excitement.

"He wanted to know what your hobbies are besides cheer, and if you have other friends." Sarah says the last part with an eye roll.

"He even asked what your schedule is." Annie jumps in.

"I think he wants to walk you to class." Says Mia.

Chloe smiles. "He's so sweet." She gushes. "I can't believe this is actually happening. I'm such a nerd, I never thought someone like Jake could even like me."

"He told us to tell you to meet him in the auditorium on the stage before you eat lunch." Says Annie. "We think he wants to ask you out."

"Like a date?" Chloe asks in shock. The trio nods.

"I heard he wanted to ask after he bumped into you at the movie theater but then you got grounded for two weeks." Mia says.

"How did you find that out?" Sarah asks.

Mia shrugs. "Around." She vaguely states as the bell goes off for home room.

"Just make sure you tell us everything that happens." Annie warns Chloe.

Chloe just rolls her eyes then heads off to home room.

 **Lunch**

It's been hard for Chloe to concentrate on school work all day. The teen was constantly catching herself day dreaming every possible scenario that could occur between herself and her crush in the auditorium. Now that she's even closer to meeting him, she's nervous.

Although shes confident he's going to ask her on a date, the problem is Chloe doesn't know how she'll respond once she finally hears him say the words. Chloe has had a crush on the jock since last year, and she's nervous she'll become mute, or even does, or says something that will embarrass her.

"I was hoping you would be here."

Chloe stops pacing and faces the left side stage where Jake is standing. "You didn't think I would?" She asks, attempting to look and sound less nervous than she is.

Jake shrugs. "I would be lying if I said I wasn't second guessing how you feel about me." Chloe looks surprised. "I mean, we don't know each other very well and we don't have many classes together so-" He pauses, putting an end to his rambling. "Sorry, I guess I'm just more nervous than I thought." He says with a charming smile.

"I'm nervous, too." Chloe admits with a shy smile.

Jake walks over to Chloe and holds her hand. "So I should just say it then since we're both nervous, huh?" Chloe nods. "Would you like to go on a date with me Saturday night?"

As excited as she is, Chloe can't help but feel slightly disappointed. Although it's just a day away, she had hoped they would go Friday night instead.

"Of course, I would love to but why Saturday and not Friday? I thought you took all your dates on Friday?"

"Nah, maybe when football season was over but I have a game, plus, I usually have a party Friday nights." He explains. "So is Saturday ok?" He double checks.

"Oh yeah, definitely. I just have to ask my Moms' and make sure it's ok with them first. I definitely don't want to get grounded again."

Jake snorts. "Yeah, your Moms' are pretty strict." He notes out loud.

Chloe shrugs. "They're just protective." She defends them.

Jake chuckles. "Whatever you say. They're your parents." He then leans over to lightly kiss Chloe's cheek, causing her to blush. "See you around, gorgeous." He turns around to leave, but then pauses. "Call me." He winks

"I will." Her blush deepens.

Chloe watches him leave then takes a moment to recover before leaving herself.

 **4:00pm**

After a long day of work, Santana now has to rush to find one of Chloe's friend's parents to drop Chloe home. Normally Santana would take her, however, the Latina had forgotten about a staff meeting she has today, since they had a very busy morning, until Brody reminded her during their lunch break. Luckily, the brunette eventually finds Sarah's Father and he happily agrees.

"Thank you so much." Santana breathes a sigh of relief. "Ok, sweetie, I'll see you later, te amo. Tell your Mother I should be back before dinner. If I'm not, I'll make it up to her."

Santana gives Chloe a quick kiss to her cheek but the teen still wipes it away as she gets into the car.

"I love you, too."

Santana steps back then waits until the car disappears down the road before going back in the school for the meeting the principle set up about bullying, amongst other things but to Santana, as a parent herself, she's only attending the meeting to learn new ways to deal with bullying.

On her way to the conference room, Santana spots Brittany in the teacher's lounge, trying to get a snack out of the vending machine. The brunette pauses then joins her friend.

"Have anymore change left to get me sour cream chips?"

Brittany jumps a little then smiles. "Maybe. Are you still gonna try to hook me up with Brody?"

Santana rolls her eyes. "No." Brittany chuckles getting the chips then gives Santana the bag. "Gracias." The brunette and blonde walk together to the conference room. "Maybe we should have a girl's night out, with Quinn, Rachel, Tina and Cedes. Go to a bar or something and find you a date." Santana suddenly suggests as they reach the conference room.

"Find who a date?" Miss. Holiday, the substitute asks.

"Brittany." Santana answers for them.

Miss. Holiday looks surprised. "Aren't you a dancer?" Brittany nods, chuckling to herself. "How in the world do you have trouble finding anyone?"

Brittany shrugs. "There's a lot of sharks in the sea."

"Oh, yeah. I hear ya, sister."

The three women have their conversation cut too short when the principle walks in, ready to begin the meeting. Everyone takes their seats at the conference table and as expected, Santana paid most attention to their discussion about bullying, and even made some notes to remember what to do, and not to do in the circumstances that a student may be bullying another student. However, the rest of the meeting became a blur for the Latina.

Santana spends the rest of the meeting silently counting down the minutes until she's able to go home again. When the time finally came, Santana practically runs out of the building, avoiding small talk from co-workers, and Brody. At home, the Latina is greeted with shouting coming from the kitchen.

Santana groans closing the door behind her then takes her time removing her jacket and shoes before entering the drama in the other room. Quinn and Chloe are shouting at one another as dinner still sits on the stove. Santana checks the food, and realizing it's gotten cold, she turns the stove back on then whistles to end the shouting match.

"What the hell is going on? Why has no one eaten yet, and why are you two arguing?"

Quinn takes a deep breath. "We haven't eaten yet cause I wanted to wait for you, and we're arguing because Chloe thinks she can do whatever she wants." She says glaring at the teen.

Santana sighs heavily then walks up to her wife and lovingly rubs her lower back. "Why don't you go outside and get some air, mi amor." She suggests in a gently tone. "I'll talk to Chloe, then we can eat, ok?" Quinn nods then pecks Santana's lips before going out on the back patio. When she does, Santana turns to Chloe. "What was that about?"

Chloe huffs. "I just asked if I can go out on a date with Jake, and Mom started freaking out. I got mad, so I told her I would find a way to go. I'm a teenager, I should be allowed to date." She argues.

"Not someone who is older than you." Santana points out. "We're the parents here, we set the rules, and we do not want you dating that boy. He's a punk and not good enough for my baby, you deserve better."

Chloe stomps her foot like a child. "You don't even know him. Just give him a chance." She pleads. "You can talk to him when he picks me up, and if you still don't like him, then I won't go." The teen does her best puppy dog frown.

Santana glances outside and groans. "Your Mom will have to agree to this, too, and right now she needs to calm down. Watch the food doesn't burn, I'll go talk to her." Chloe nods with a hopeful smile. Santana then realizes Sofia is missing just as she turns to go outside. "Where's Sofia?"

"Upstairs. She might be hiding from all the shouting." She says with guilt.

"Ok, turn the stove off, then and go check on her instead." Chloe nods and does as she's told as Santana joins her wife on the back patio. Quinn is siting on the stairs with her head in her hands. Santana sits next to the blonde and wraps her arm around her waist. Quinn then rests her head on the Latina's shoulder.

"I don't want her to go out with this boy. He's too old for her." Says Quinn.

"I know, I feel the same way. But Chloe thinks he deserves a chance." Quinn snorts. "She insists we don't know him."

"But we do, we dated guys like him."

Santana cringes. "Por favor, don't remind me of the time I pretended to be straight." Quinn flashes a weak smile then plants a loving kiss to Santana's shoulder, followed by a pregnancy pause.

"She's just going to find another way to go, though, if we say no." Quinn thinks out loud. "And if we let her go, we'll at least have more control over the situation."

Santana arches her brow. "How so?"

"We get to chose where they can go, and what time he has to take her home." She points out. "And there's no doubt in my mind Snix could scare him into anything."

Santana blushes. "Oh yeah?"

Quinn nods, then lifts her head and smiles. "Absolutely. If she can make a grown man cry, she can get some punk teenager to bring her daughter home at a decent hour."

Santana smiles then closes the gap between them in a gentle kiss. "Then I guess we decided to let her go." Quinn nods. "Snix is going to interrogate the hell out of him first, though, or he's not taking my baby anywhere."

Quinn chuckles. "I love how protective you are." Santana blushes once again, making Quinn laugh. "Come on, lets go tell Chloe the good news." The couple stand up then stretch before going back inside. "Where is she?"

"I asked her to check on Sofia." Santana takes Quinn's hand and gently drags the blonde upstairs to Sofia's room. Chloe is looking under the bed when the walk in. "Where's Sofia?" Santana frowns, realizing the teen is searching for her.

Chloe pops her head out from the bed and shrugs. "She wasn't here when I came up."

The trio begin to search for the little girl when Santana hears something from the closet. She opens the door then turns the light on to find Sofia siting on the floor against the wall and hugging her legs. Santana crouches in front of the girl.

" _Hey, you."_ She gently greets in Spanish. " _Why are you hiding in here?"_

Sofia shyly shrugs. " _I heard shouting. Bad things happen when people shout."_

Santana flashes a sympathetic smile. " _That may be true, but we don't hurt each other. We may get angry, and get a little too loud, but we never hurt the ones we love, not on purpose. You're ok, you can come out now. Dinner should be ready soon, are you hungry?"_

Sofia nods, and Santana encourages the little girl to come out of the closet. As she does, Santana notices the bucket that should be in the hall closet she uses for cleaning, and frowns in confusion, but drops the subject for now.

"Mi amor, why don't you and Sofia finish dinner, while I talk to Chloe." Santana suggests. "We'll be down soon. Then when we're done eating, we can get ready for Sofia's therapy session." Although, worried Sofia won't be doing much talking, Quinn takes the girl downstairs. Santana then gestures for Chloe to sit down.

"You're still not going to let me go." Chloe says disappointed, surprising Santana.

"What makes you say that?" She asks, crossing her arms.

Chloe shrugs. "No matter what I say, it won't change how old he is."

Santana nods. "That may be true, but you're right, we don't know him. So, we're willing to give him a chance." Chloe smiles, already excited and Santana puts up her finger. "But Snix will be allowed to ask any, and as many questions as she wants, and he has to bring you home by nine sharp, no questions asked, understood?" She asks, sternly.

Chloe nods, still smiling, then jumps up and hugs Santana. "Thank you, thank you, thank you. I'm gonna call him now." She stands to do just that when Santana stops her.

"You can call him after we eat." Chloe rolls her eyes as she follows Santana downstairs and into the kitchen. "Dinner ready?" Santana asks Quinn.

"Yup. Chlo, can you take Sofia to the bathroom so you two can wash up?" The teen nods, then silently gestures for Sofia to follow her. Santana helps Quinn set the table. "How did it go?" Quinn asks.

"Good. Of course she thought, I would say no, but she was definitely happy when I didn't."

Quinn snorts. "She knows Snix will be out full force on him, and she was ok with it?" She teases.

"For now, but I'm sure once he's here, she'll regret it." Quinn laughs as the girls return.

As the girls take a seat, Santana notices Sofia recognize the Spanish meal Quinn made.

 _"My Mami used to make it for me when I was your age, alot, it's one of my favorites, and Quinn asked that I teach her how to make it, so we can have it whenever I want."_ She explains in Spanish, then quietly repeats it to Quinn.

Sofia shyly smiles. _"It's my favorite, too."_

Santana winks, making Sofia blush when Quinn quietly reminds the Latina about the therapy session. Because Sofia was asleep after the session was scheduled, they never had the chance to tell the little girl. However, Santana takes a moment to think of how she could explain to someone Sofia's age what therapy is, and why she's going.

" _I know you're really missing your Mom, so I asked Quinn to make it for us during my lunch break at work."_ She starts, trying to ease into the therapy first, despite knowing Quinn doesn't understand what she's saying.

" _She used to make this for me whenever I felt sick, it made me feel better."_

Santana smiles, while Quinn and Chloe begin talking amongst each other. " _She didn't take you to the doctor?"_

Sofia nods. "Si. _But this always made me feel better when we got home, cause I don't like doctors."_

Santana chuckles. " _Doctors heal our bodies, though. and therapists, heal our brains."_ Sofia furrows her brows, curious. " _You were asleep, so we couldn't tell you last night, but we scheduled an appointment for you with a therapist."_

 _"My brain needs healing?"_

Again, Santana chuckles, this time getting Quinn's attention. Santana silently gestures for the blonde to wait a moment before continuing her conversation with Sofia. " _Sort of. We know your Mami's boyfriend wasn't very nice to you, and this doctor can help you talk about that, but only if you like her. We won't force you to do anything you don't want to, ok?"_

Although nervous about the idea of having to talk about Marcos, Sofia nods. "Si."

The girls continue eating, and Santana waits until everyone is done to let Quinn know everything that was said between her and Sofia.

"So she agreed to go?" Quinn asks while Sofia collects her shoes from the foyer.

"Yeah, I don't know if she'll like it, though, so lets not push it."

Quinn nods. "Are we leaving Chloe here alone, or should I call Brittany?"

"If it were earlier, I'd say she's old enough to stay on her own, but I don't know how long we'll be and it should be getting dark soon, so call Brittany now. We have to leave soon."

While Quinn calls their friend, Santana fills Chloe on what's going on, then the couple wait until Brittany arrives before they finally leave. The drive would be quiet if it weren't for the radio. The couple can see Sofia has a lot on her mind, so they leave the child with her thoughts.

When they get there, Sofia unconsciously stays by Santana's side as the trio walk inside and wait in the waiting room. Unfortunately for Sofia, since its' the end of the day, there's only one session before hers, so she doesn't have to wait long to be called in. Sofia looks to Santana for encouragement then reluctantly follows the doctor to her office.

The fairly large room is painted with _Disney_ princesses and other characters. There's a table, some toys in a toy chest, or on the floor, scattered around like they've been played with during the day. There's also an area to color or paint, with a large isle and sketching pad next to a table full of makers, pencils, crayons and colored pencils.

"I know this is scary for you, but don't worry, today's session we won't talk about why you're here." Saundra starts to explain. "You can ask me any questions you want, or you can just relax and draw a picture for me, then you can decide if you'd like to come see me on a regular basis."

Sofia bites her lip then scans the room as she decides what she wants to do. When she finally makes her decision, Sofia silently walks over to the isle, and grabs a marker, but pauses as she goes to put the point against the paper.

"Need some inspiration?" Saundra asks. Sofia nods. "Do you know what a portrait is?" Sofia shakes her head. "It can be a picture, or drawing of yourself. Why don't you start with that?" She suggests. "It's easy, and I can get an idea of how you see yourself, ok?"

Sofia just silently starts her drawing. As she does, Saundra sits back and watches the little girl, making notes as she does, until Sofia is finished.

"Very good." She praises the child, then looks at her watch. "I believe our time is up." Sofia seems surprised the time went by so fast. "So what do you think, would you like to make this a daily thing, or a one time exclusive only?"

Sofia takes a moment to give it some thought then, nods, confusing the doctor. "Yes, it's a one time thing?" Sofia shakes her head. Saundra smiles, relieved the little girl feels comfortable to continue their sessions. "I'm glad, I enjoyed our time together." She admits. "Why don't we go tell Santana and Quinn how you feel."

Sofia follows Saundra to the waiting room. Spotting them, the couple jump to their feet.

"How did it go?" Santana asks no one in particular.

"Great." Saundra answers. "And she would like to make this a regular thing." Santana and Quinn breathe a sigh of relief.

"I'll set up another appointment." Quinn volunteers before heading over to the front desk.

"Why don't you go with her, sweetie, while I talk to Santana for a moment." Saundra suggests to Sofia. The little girl nods before joining Quinn at the front desk.

"Is there something wrong?" Santana asks, confused.

Saundra shakes her head. "I just wanted to talk to you about what we did." She explains. "I just wanted her to be comfortable with me, and gain my trust, so I had Sofia draw a portrait of herself. It's a little odd, though, considering it doesn't exactly look like her, but I'm sure there's a reason for it."

Santana frowns. "What do you mean, it doesn't exactly look like her? Are you criticizing a child's drawing?"

"Of course not. I have my patients draw a portrait so I can get an idea of how they see themselves, and Sofia drew herself with darker skin, and much shorter hair, almost as if it was shaved." She explains. "It's just different than what I've seen other children draw." Santana nods slowly when Quinn and Sofia appear next to them.

"I asked that the appointments be every Monday after school." Says Quinn.

"Ok, good. Thanks again, doctor."

Saundra smiles as Santana shakes her hand. "Please, call me Saundra."

Santana nods, then turns to Sofia. "Ready to go?" She nods. "We'll see you next Monday." She says to Saundra.

"I'm looking forward to it. Goodbye, Sofia."

Sofia shyly waves then follows Santana and Quinn out to the car. On the way home, Sofia falls asleep so Santana repeats what Saundra had told her about the drawing to her wife.

"I'm glad we decided to make this appointment, then." Says Quinn. "I can't believe that's how she thinks of herself. I mean, I knew the abuse was bad-" Santana cuts Quinn off, holding her hand and kissing the back of it.

"She's going to get the help she needs now."

Quinn sighs deeply. "For the time being, she will be. If Gabriella wins the case, she's not going to take her." She points out.

"Then we have to make sure that doesn't happen." Santana says with determination.

When they reach the house, Santana carries Sofia upstairs, while Quinn pays Brittany, and lets her go home. However, she meets Santana in Sofia's room and agree she couldn't go two nights without brushing her teeth, no matter how much the little girl pouted or whined. After getting into her pajama's, Sofia falls into a deep sleep the second her head hits the pillow.

Santana and Quinn also be sure to say goodnight to Chloe before going to sleep themselves. When Chloe is sure her parents are sleeping, the teen pulls out her cellphone from under her pillow then opens a group chat with her girl friends.

 _Chloe: I called him right after my mom and mami said yes but he still hasn't told me where we're going._

 _Annie: ohh a surprise date. how romantic._

 _Mia: he's probably going to take you to breadstix. he takes all the girls there._

 _Sarah: maybe he still trying to figure out where to take you._

Chloe frowns at Sarah's response. Out of all her friends, Sarah seems to be the only one who's less excited for her, and she doesn't understand why.

 _Chloe: no. i think he knows. he kept promising me i'm going to love it over the phone._

 _Annie: just don't forget to tell us everything that happens._

 _Mia: just not all the dirty details ;)_

 _Sarah left group chat._

 _Chloe: gross! it's our first date mia! i haven't even thought about that._

 _Mia: it was just a joke._

 _Chloe: :p_

 _Annie: why did sarah leave?_

 _Chloe: idk._

 _Mia: she's probably just on her period. she's been moody lately._

 _Annie: i gotta go. can't keep my eyes open. goodnight._

 _Chloe: goodnight annie. goodnight mia._

 _Mia: goodnight. see you in the a.m._

* * *

"Chloe Grace, _you better get outta that bed, or I'm flipping the mattress with you in it!"_ Santana shouts from the bottom of the stairs, in Spanish before stomping into the kitchen to get her coffee to go.

"Honey, I know you're mad, but she didn't understand anything you were saying." Quinn says with a slight chuckle, as she tries to hold it back, knowing it'll just add fuel to her wife's furry.

Santana sighs. "I spoke Spanish again?"

Quinn nods giving Sofia her breakfast. "I still don't know how you don't realize you're not speaking English."

Santana just shrugs as she impatiently taps her foot then huffs. "That's it, I'm going up there."

Before Quinn could protest, Santana is storming out the kitchen, and upstairs to Chloe's room. The teen is still in bed, and has her pillow over her face, sleeping. Santana rolls her eyes, then without warning, grabs on to the side of Chloe's comforter and yanks it upward, causing the teen to roll ungraciously off the bed, and on to the hardwood floor.

"Ow, what the hell?!" Chloe shouts, popping up from the floor and holding her side. "That really hurt." She whines.

" _If you haven't stayed up so late, you would be up and dressed for school by now. What have I told you about constantly texting your friends you see every day so late at night?!"_

Chloe groans as she gets up off the floor then stomps her feet past Santana, to her bathroom. "I didn't understand a single word you said, but if I bruise, and I can't dance at cheer practice, I'm not doing suicides!" With that the teen slams the door shut. Santana groans, glaring at the closed bathroom door before returning downstairs.

"That went well." Santana glares at her wife. Quinn puts her hands up in surrender, then ties Sofia's shoes for her. "I'm sorry, babe, but you need to find a better outlet for your temper. I don't know if going to the gym is working."

Santana takes a moment to calm down, silently counting to five. "It works, I just have to start going more, but I think I should find a new gym."

Quinn frowns in confusion. "Why, I thought you liked it?"

"It's not the gym I don't like, it's the people." Quinn narrows her eyes, still confused. "Brody works out there." She clarifies.

"Oh, that's right, I forgot. Then by all means, find a new gym." She agrees. "Now if only he could find a new school to teach at, life would be so much easier."

Santana flashes a sympathetic smile as Chloe descends the stairs, showered and dressed for school.

"Get your shoes on, cheer practice started without us already."

"I can't get something to eat? You're always saying breakfast is the most important meal of the day."

Santana pinches the bridge of her nose. " _I don't have the patience_ -"

"Baby, you're speaking Spanish again." Quinn gently reminds her wife.

"I don't have the patience for this today." She finishes in English. "Just grab something quick."

Chloe quickly retrieves a cereal bar then rushes to Santana's car, while Quinn and Sofia take Quinn's car. The married couple say their goodbyes before parting ways. On the drive to the Elementary school, Quinn attempts to make small talk with Sofia, trying to bond more with the little girl, and get her to open up.

"Have you made any friends?"

Sofia nods. "Brooke is nice." She says above a whisper. Quinn has the radio off so she can hear.

Quinn smiles. "I was hoping you would get along with her. She's Brittany's niece, did you know that?"

Sofia just nods once more. Although she makes many attempts to get Sofia to talk, the little Latina remains quiet for the rest of the ride. Quinn makes one last attempt, wishing Sofia a good day, but the brunette remains mute before going inside the building.

Now that it's been a few weeks into school, the second grade class has a routine. In the morning, the kids hang up their jackets on individual hangers covering one side of the wall. Under their hangers, is a shelf for their lunches, if a student might have one. Most kids eat the lunch the school provides, like Sofia. Once everyone has put everything away, the teacher starts the lesson plan for the day.

Sofia has been struggling with most lessons, so it hasn't been fun for her. The other kids are reading and writing at a much faster pace than Sofia, and sometimes it can be embarrassing. Some kids laugh whenever she used to get an answer wrong, and even though they would be scolded for it, Sofia now refuses to answer whenever she's called on.

Recess is her favorite part of the day. There may be a few students who still pick on her, like Leo and his friends, but on a playground, they're easier to avoid than in a classroom. Sofia usually keeps to herself or plays with Brooke. Today, Brooke is keeping her company on the monkey bars. The girls have climbed up them, and now are siting on top, with their feet dangling over the edge, as they watch other students play.

"Don't you wanna play?" Brooke asks, clearly bored from just siting on the monkey bars.

"I'm too hungry to play."

"But we just ate." Brooke points out.

Sofia shrugs. "I'm still hungry." There's a short silence.

"Do you really speak Spanish?" Brooke suddenly asks. "Leo said you're a spic, cause you speak Spanish."

Sofia glares at the other girl. "That's a bad word, you shouldn't say it."

"Sorry." Brooke pouts.

"Si, I speak Spanish."

"Why don't you say more stuff in Spanish then?"

Sofia shrugs. "No one else can." She points out, like it's obvious, when Leo and his friends approach.

"What do you want, Leo?" Brooke asks.

"We need more people to play tag."

"I'd rather eat dirt than play with you." Brooke claims then sticks out her tongue.

Leo rolls his eyes. "Don't be such a baby. I'll play fair." He promises. "Or you can sit on the monkey bars all recess bored out of your mind." He says dramatically, attempting to persuade the girls to play. Brooke looks to Sofia.

"Fine." She gives up, bored herself. "But you're it." She says to Leo.

The boy just rolls his eyes as the girls carefully jump down the monkey bars then quickly run away as Leo tries chasing everyone to tag. Sofia runs by the swings, thinking Leo wouldn't risk getting kicked, but he still follows her. Then she goes to the jungle gym, thinking she could lose him in the tunnel slide, but he still follows.

"There are other kids you can tag!" She shouts, running toward the other children, so he would chase them instead.

"I don't want to chase them!" He shouts back.

As Sofia continues to run, she almost collides with another student, and is forced to slow down, causing Leo to finally catch up with her. When he does, the boy extends his arms toward Sofia, and pushes her hard on to the ground.

"Tag, you're it!" He screams, while pushing her. Without a word, Sofia glares up at the boy then quickly stands up and pushes Leo even harder. When he hits the ground, his elbow lands on a sharp rock, cutting the skin. "Ow!" He says holding on to his bleeding elbow.

"Mr. Williams!" The student Sofia almost ran into shouts, as she witnessed Leo being pushed. "Sofia pushed Leo, and now he's bleeding." She tells one of the near by teacher, as the adults watch over the kids.

Mr. Williams helps Leo stand up then inspects his wound. "You'll be ok, nothing a band-aid can't fix." He then turns to Sofia. "Sofia, why did you push Leo?"

" _He pushed me first."_

The teacher frowns. "I'm sorry, I don't understand. Can you repeat that in English, please?" Sofia is silent, Mr. Williams sighs. "Sofia, go to the principle's office, I'll be with you in a minute."

With her head down, Sofia does as she's told. On her way to the office, Sofia mind begins to wander about how Quinn and Santana will react to the principle telling them she's been a bad girl today, and what her punishment would be. If she were at home with her Mother, and Marcos, she knows exactly what her punishment would be. It makes her belly hurt at just the thought of it.

 _Gabriella has been working more and more, leaving Sofia with Marcos. Sofia hates it, she hates Marcos, even if it is a bad thing to say. He's mean when Gabriella isn't around. Usually Sofia tries to avoid him, but that isn't always easy to do when he forces her to do all of his chores. One day, Marcos had a whole list of chores to do, so the house was clean for when Gabriella's Father comes to visit. He doesn't visit often, but when he does, the house has to be spotless._

 _While Sofia cleans the kitchen floor, Marcos watches tv and drinks his beer in the living room. Before he went into the living room, however, he did give Sofia instructions on how to properly mop the floor. Although Sofia had been doing exactly as he demonstrated earlier, her arms are getting tired from the repetition movements and still has most of the floor to clean yet._

 _For the moment she takes a break, to give her arms a rest when she thinks of an idea. The bucket Marcos has filled with water and Pine-sole is heavy, but if she can tip it over, then the entire floor will be covered with the cleaning product and soak it up, leaving a clean floor once it dries, and she won't have sore arms. In Sofia's mind, the plan is perfect._

 _So the little brunette leans the wet mop against the counter, then carefully tips the heavy bucket, successfully spilling the water all over the kitchen floor. Sofia stands back and smiles proudly at her work when Marcos walks in._

 _"What the fuck did you do?!"_

 _Sofia frowns. "I thought it would clean the floor faster."_

 _"Of course it wouldn't, you have to scrub it, that's what the mop is for, idiot! Now look at this mess, it's like a damn indoor pool in here, you think your Mother will be happy to have a pool in her kitchen?!"_

 _Sofia shakes her head. Marcos yanks Sofia's left arm so hard, the little girl hears a pop, followed by a very sharp pain in her shoulder. She screams in agony as Marcos drags her down the hall and into her room. There, he opens the closet door and pushes her inside._

 _"You can stay in here until your Mother gets home. And you're sadly mistaken if you think you're getting any lunch after the stunt you just pulled." With that, Marcos slams the door shut. By the time she was able to get out of the hall closet, Sofia was so hungry, her belly hurt._

"Sofia." Mr. Williams repeats for a third time.

Sofia is pulled back into reality and quickly realizes she had zoned out walking to the principle's office. She hadn't even realized she made it to the main office, and has been starring at a mop and bucket a janitor had left, after cleaning the near by bathroom only the staff are allowed to use.

"Your foster Mom is on her way. But until she gets here, the principle would like to see you now."

"Which one?" Sofia whispers, still frightened. Chloe may not have been punished very bad, but Chloe isn't as bad as she is.

"Oh right, of course." He says, almost forgetting the couple are both female. "Quinn should be here soon."

Sofia just nods then follows the teacher into the principle's office. Walking inside, Sofia stays behind Mr. Williams until he sits at one of the available seats. Looking at the principle, Mrs. Jennings flashes a friendly smile.

"It's ok, you can sit down. Quinn should be here shortly." Hesitantly, Sofia takes the other seat. "Now, before your foster Mom gets here, can you tell me why you pushed Theodore?"

Sofia looks down at he lap. " _He pushed me first."_ She whispers.

"Can you repeat that in English for me?" The principle politely asks when Quinn walks in.

"I'm sorry it took so long. Traffic is awful."

Mrs. Jennings waves her off. "It's ok, I was just asking Sofia here why she pushed another student, that ultimately left him with just a scratch but we don't tolerate bullying here, but I'm only getting a few words in Spanish out of her, and I'm afraid no one here speaks Spanish." She explains.

Quinn sighs deeply. "Well, I only know a few words, but I can try." The principle nods in encouragement. Quinn crouches next to Sofia's chair. "Why did you push the little boy?"

Sofia wrings her fingers. " _He pushed me first._ " She whispers again.

Quinn slowly nods her head. "I'm sorry, I don't know what she's saying either." The blonde apologizes as she stands up.

"Ok, then I apologize for making you come all the way here." The principle says, then turns to Sofia. "I'll let you off with a warning this time. If something like this happens again, though, you'll have to sit in detention during your lunch break, ok?" Sofia nods, then Mrs. Jennings excuses Mr. Williams and asks he take Sofia with him.

"Is that all?" Quinn asks.

"Yes." Mrs. Jennings smiles. "And I hope I'm not overstepping my boundaries, but if Sofia is in trouble again, it would probably be more helpful if your wife came." She suggests. "That way we won't run into this problem again."

Quinn just flashes a tight lipped smile then walks out the door, accidentally slamming it behind her, then realizes Mr. Williams had been talking to Sofia outside the principle's office, and softens her face with an apologetic smile.

"Everything ok?" Mr. Williams asks.

Quinn nods, when a thought occurs to her. "Actually, I think I'm just going to take Sofia home with me."

The teacher frowns. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah, I'll just be coming back in a few hours to pick her up anyway."

"Alright, if you insist."

"Do you have any homework, sweetie?" Quinn asks Sofia. The little girl nods. "Ok, lets get your homework first then we'll go." Quinn then turns Mr. Williams. "Will I have to sign her out or something?"

He points to the woman at the front desk in the main office. "Alice will take care of that for you."

"Oh, ok. Thank you."

He nods. "Excuse me."

"Sure. Come on, sweetie. Lets get your homework." Sofia leads the way down the hall, then goes to her desk, while Quinn waits by the door as she gathers her book bag and homework. "Got everything?" Sofia nods. "Good."

The pair return to the main office so Quinn can sign Sofia out, then they go out to the car.

"I have to run a couple errands before we go home, ok?" Again, Quinn only receives a nod. The blonde is confused by the silence, however, she won't push Sofia to talk.

Quinn's first stop is the grocery store for a few essentials, like milk, eggs, and bread. Quinn also gets some after school snacks, and some snacks for herself, and Santana. Sofia had been along for the ride, and still silent the whole time, only nodding, or shaking her head. The last stop Sofia got a little treat at the gas station from the friendly older man behind the register, then Quinn planned on going home when she saw her favorite book store was having a huge sale.

"Sofia, do you like to read?"

The little girl nods once more, but Quinn is surprised when she starts talking. "Si, but I can't do it very well." She says quietly in shame. "The kids at school make fun of me."

Quinn frowns. "Why didn't you tell us?" Sofia shrugs. Quinn parks the car in the book stores parking lot, then removes her seat belt and turns around to face Sofia. "Don't let anyone think you're not good enough, ok? You may not read very well now, but practice makes perfect. We can work on that together, if you want." She offers.

Sofia takes a moment to give it some thought. When she was just in kindergarten, her Mother used to read to her, and help her read all the time, but as she got older, they did it less and less, then not at all after Marcos came into their lives. Sofia loved it. She would picture the characters and scenery in her head like a movie.

"Ok." She quietly says, earning a smile from Quinn.

"Lets pick out some books then." She winks.

The pair walk inside and Sofia is instantly amazed at the amount of books. Although the store isn't very big, there are wall to wall books. In every nook and cranny, there are books on top of books, ranging in a variety of genre. They look in the kids section first for Sofia, then to the adult part of the store for Quinn before taking their selections to the register. The woman behind the counter looks like a older version of Quinn, and even looks surprised to see her.

"Quinn, you haven't stopped by in a while. How've you been?" She asks, eyeing Sofia in confusion.

"Good. Santana and I might be adding a new member to the family, hopefully. You might have another niece if Santana's Father can win this case for us." She explains. "This is Sofia. Sofia, this is my older sister Frannie." The little girl waves shyly.

"You're adopting again?" Quinn nods. "What do you mean by win this case, I thought Lisa was your agent?"

"She is, this case is just-different." She vaguely explains.

Frannie nods slowly, then rings everything up. "That'll be 27.50." Quinn takes out the bills from her wallet then hands it to her sister. "Don't be a stranger. Graham has been asking about you, he misses his favorite Aunt."

Quinn chuckles. "I'm his only Aunt." She points out. "I'll try to stop by more." She promises.

"You better." Frannie jokingly points her finger at her younger sister. "It was nice meeting you, Sofia."

Sofia just nods as Quinn grabs the books. Then the pair return to the car and go home. Inside, while Quinn puts the snacks away, Sofia goes upstairs.

"If you help me put this stuff away, I can make you a snack." Quinn says, not realizing Sofia went to her room.

Not getting a response, however, the blonde turns around to discover she's alone, but not for long as Santana and Chloe walk in the foyer, just diagonal from the kitchen.

"You can wear makeup, but not a lot, and your Mother will be doing it." Santana says sternly as the pair remove their coats and shoes.

"Fine." Chloe reluctantly agrees.

Santana walks into the kitchen then wraps her arms around her wife from behind. "How was your day, mi amor?"

Quinn sighs. "Long, and I have to talk to you."

Santana groans into Quinn's neck as the blonde continues putting away the snacks. "I take it you have bad news."

"What gave it away?" Quinn tries to joke, turning into Santana's arms when Chloe walks in, and starts snooping through the last of the snacks.

"You didn't get my chocolate cupcakes." She says disappointed.

Quinn frowns, knowing she definitely bought a box. "I did. I remember I did cause they were on sale and I got two boxes, actually." She says checking the bag herself and realizes they're missing.

"Did you go to the self check out?" Quinn nods. "Maybe you left them at the register."

Quinn shrugs. "Maybe. Sorry, sweetie, I'll get more tomorrow." She promises.

"Ok, thanks." She says grabbing anther snack, then takes it to her room.

"So what's the bad news?" Santana asks getting into the snacks herself.

"I had to go to Sofia's school today. She pushed a little boy at recess, he has a cut on his elbow."

Santana frowns. "That's it?"

"Well, no, but aren't you concerned she might be a bully or something?"

"Did you ask why she pushed him?"

"Of course. But I couldn't understand her, she spoke in Spanish. Mrs. Jennings even told me to have you go to the school, in case something like that happens again cause she wouldn't speak English."

Santana nods slowly then throws away the wrapping from the snack she ate. "Can you at least repeat what she said?" Quinn takes a moment to remember what Sofia kept saying then slowly repeats it. "She said he pushed her first."

Quinn looks guilty. "Oh."

"She was just defending herself, she's not a bully. She's been bullied for years." Santana points out.

Quinn sighs. "Well, now I feel guilty."

Santana flashes a sympathetic smile. "You didn't know. But I'll call Mrs. Jennings tomorrow after school." She promises. "So what's the other news?"

"Oh, right." Quinn sighs. "You remember Mrs. Collins, the older woman from all the Christmas office parties?"

Santana takes a moment to remember then nods. "She finally retired?"

"Yeah, but until they hire someone else, I'm going to be working overtime for awhile." Quinn winces as Santana crosses her arms over her chest.

"You know how I feel about that."

Quinn steps forward, and wraps her arms around the Latina. "I do but, I don't have a choice, baby. I'm not the only one working over time to make up for losing one of our best realtors."

"I don't get to see you when you work overtime." Santana pouts.

"I'll still call you." Quinn attempts to cheer the brunette up by peppering her face and lips with kisses, however, she knows it's not working, and stops. "Then maybe I'll try stopping by the school for lunch instead."

Santana cracks a hint of a smile. "You don't have to do that, not all the time, anyway. At least twice a week."

Quinn chuckles. "Is that all."

Santana blushes. "Si." Quinn reconnects their lips in a loving kiss, when the blonde spots Sofia standing in the door way and jumps away, confusing Santana. The brunette follows her wife's line of vision and smiles. "Hey, you. _Are you hungry?_ "

Sofia frowns in confusion, curious why she hasn't been punished yet for pushing Leo.

" _Am I grounded?"_

Santana shakes her head, crouching to Sofia's height. "No, you're not grounded. Quinn told me what you said at school." She explains. "We won't punish you for defending yourself."

Although she still seems to be confused, Sofia drops the subject.

 **9:30pm**

After dinner, Chloe went right to her bedroom, while Santana helped Sofia take a shower and get ready for bed.

" _Did you get the back teeth?"_ Santana asks as Sofia finishes up brushing her teeth.

"Si."

Sofia goes into the bedroom and tucks herself into bed. Santana turns out the bathroom light, then turns on the nightlight on Sofia's bed side table, when Quinn walks in.

"Goodnight, pequena." Santana kisses her forehead, then moves aside so Quinn can do the same. As she does, Santana can tell Sofia wants to say something. "What's wrong, sweetie?"

Sofia glances at Quinn. " _Can Quinn read my new book?"_ Quinn knows the little girl said her name, and turns to her wife.

"She wants you to read her new book." Santana says confused. "She got a new book?"

Quinn nods. "I forgot to tell you Frannie's book store had a sale today. She got to meet Sofia." She explains, then turns to Sofia. "I would love to read your new book." Sofia blushes. Santana pecks Quinn's lips.

"I'll wait for you in our room, love." She says leaving the room.

Sofia points out her new book, then Quinn gets comfortable on the floor before she begins to read. Sofia stays awake for a while, until she can no longer keep her eyes open, no matter how hard she tries. Quinn kisses the child's cheek, then puts the book back before joining her wife in the master bedroom. Santana is already sleeping, so the blonde carefully climbs into bed, then slips her arm around Santana's waist, becoming the big spoon.

"She asleep?"

Quinn jumps a little, not expecting Santana to be awake. "Yeah. I thought you were sleeping."

Santana turns around in Quinn's arms and cuddles into her chest. "I was, then I felt you get into bed." The brunette yawns. "So Sofia is a book nerd like you?"

Quinn chuckles. "Kind of. She likes to read but she's not very good yet. I told her I would work on it with her."

Santana hums, burying her face in her wife's neck. "That'll be good for the both of you." Santana starts peppering kisses over Quinn's neck, then changes their position so she's on top. "You have something to bond over."

Quinn just moans as Santana continues to kiss up her jaw, then finally to her lips. The blonde holds on to Santana's waist then thrusts her hips up as the Latina's tongue squirms it's way into her mouth.

Wanting to gain control over the situation, Quinn slips her knee between Santana's legs, then puts just the right amount of pressure to her center. The movement distracts Santana long enough for Quinn to flip their position so she's on top.

"I hate when you do that." Santana says.

Quinn chuckles. "I hate when you shove your tongue in my mouth, so we're even."

Santana scoffs. "Well now you have control, so what are you gonna do now?" She challenges. Quinn just smirks then slides down Santana's body and settles between her legs.

"I'm gonna have dessert."

* * *

 **A/N 2:**

 **Thoughts, concerns, questions? Don't be shy, let me know.**


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